The Chronicles of Stella ~ September 22, 2017

I sure enjoy my morning walks.  Every day is a new adventure in one way or another.  Today the air was somehow different.  My mom said it was "sultry."  I don't know if she'r right or not but I sure do love the sound of that word.  Say it out loud a few times, let it just drip off your lips like a cold drink of water.  Good, huh?

We got to play a new game today called Dodge the Horse Poo.  I thought it was a blast but Mom didn't seem to be enjoying it quite as much.  I think she needs to learn to appreciate smelly stuff a bit more.  She puts my poo in little special bags but then... she throws them away.  Disrespectful if you ask me.


It had been a pretty uneventful morning and then...  I spotted Dewdrop ~ yay!  Imagine my surprise to learn she now has a baby!!!!!  Such a tiny little thing who didn't seem very sure of how her legs worked at first.  I kinda remember that feeling from when I was a wee puppy.  Mom let me stop to chat a bit and I learned her name was DJ which I can only assume stands for Dew Jr.  When it was time to move along, DJ didn't run to catch up to her momma, she bounced... just like I do then I'm excited.  I just adore making new friends and can hardly wait until tomorrow to see what or who might come next.  Wishing you all a very sultry day.

Baby DJ in the left corner

Me learning to walk

Loves & Licks,
Stella

Different isn't bad, it's just different is all

The Chronicles of Stella ~ September 14, 2017

Wondering what this winter is going to be like?  Well... I am pleased to introduce you to my new friend.  Isn't he handsome?  I was mesmerized by his colors and then Mom said she thought his colors somehow predicted the upcoming winters harshness.  How cool is that?  Kind of like a superhero power.  We hung out for a minute or two but he wasn't too talkative and didn't seem real interested in joining us for our walk.  I was kinda glad because I didn't want to hurt his feelings but he moved kinda slow.  Sometimes friends are a lot like us and sometimes they are very different.  Either way is wonderful, that's whats important to remember.

I asked Mom to Google woolly bear caterpillars and here's what it said...

People who believe woolly worms can predict the weather think that a narrow red-brown band means a harsh winter.  The wider the red-brown band is, the milder the coming winter is supposed to be.

So there you go!  I learned something new today and maybe you did too.

Loves & Licks,
Stella

WARNING-WARNING there was a turf war on the trail this morning!  Shades of Westside Story I swear... and yes, I have seen the movie, have you?

The ducks were out in force, squawking and raising their wings in protest about something.  I was certain a rumble was about to begin.  I know it's their trail and I'm just a visitor passing by so I never ever chase or bark or even snarl but today I was tempted.  They weren't going to let us move by at first.  I was mentally reviewing the dance moves I'd seen on tv for fear that would be our only saving grace and I was hoping Mom was ready to perform too.

Instead, Mom decided we just needed to leave them be and cut our walk short a bit and headed back to the car.  Usually I might protest that but it was raining pretty hard and I was already sufficiently soaked and... I didn't really wanted to be subjected to any bloodshed.  I hope they are able to work out their differences and tomorrow the trail will once again be peaceful.  So... do you think ducks pack switchblades?

Love & Licks,
Stella

Treat Time

Mmmmmmmm, our house smells so good!  The fragrance of cinnamon has filled the air and I’m already dreaming of it filling my tummy.  Mom is making me treats today. Tomorrow she’ll be stirring up my raw meat concoction too. Yes, some call me spoiled but I prefer to think of it more like being very, very lucky and extremely well loved. 

Sweet potatoes & cinnamon chews are simply delicious and as you can see, absolutely no preservatives, chemicals, or ingredients you can’t pronounce. Just simply sweet-potatoes and cinnamon.  Mom just slices up sweet-potatoes, some in circles, others in strips.  She uses a big cookie sheet or two and swears by using those silicone mats inside the cookie sheet to keep cleanup to an absolute minimum. I like that because time spent cleaning up is time we could have spent playing!

Once she gets those in the oven (250 degrees) and the timer set for eight hours, she’s on to the next batch of deliciousness, Peanut-butter Paws. Again, just three simple ingredients, peanut-butter, coconut oil and a bit more cinnamon BUT there is a Pup Alert that you need to be... well, alerted to. Artificial sweeteners are bad news for canines (and humans too)  so please be very, very careful that you don’t accidentally buy sugar free peanut-butter. My Mom likes to use all natural p-butter and I agree, it’s yummers. BTW she also smears some of it on the inside edge of the bathtub when I get spa-day.  I’m so busy licking up all that deliciousness, I don’t even remember getting soaped up and then rinsed. Cool huh?  I see I’ve gone down a rabbit hole so will attempt to get back to the subject at hand... TREATS!

First of all, you need to find a paw print silicone mold, or a mold of something you like the look and size of. Good old Amazon carries a fun selection.

 A tall plastic squeeze dispenser helps to keep things tidy when filling the molds and is available on Amazon also. 

The recipe is a simple one-to-one ratio of the coconut oil & the p-butter. Mom usually mixes 1/2 c pbutter to 1/2 c coconut oil in a small sauce pan on low heat until it’s all melted smooth and silky and then adds a couple shakes of cinnamon. Using a funnel she fills up the squeeze bottle and then uses that to fill the molds. She slides them into the freezer for about 20 min to set & then she pops them all out and refills the molds again. Be sure to keep the treats in the fridge or freezer because they melt easily if left out.

Lastly is the recipe Mom uses for my breakfast. She adores Dr Karen Becker, a world renowned veterinarian that is amazing.  This is Steve Browns recipe and Dr. Becker says it’s nutritionally balanced and I can say it tastes fantabulous. Mom makes a big batch, pats them out like hamburger patties and then freezes them for me.

So see, its not hard at all to make your very own, healthy pup treats & believe me, no matter how much your pooch loves you now, they'll love you even more when they taste your creations.

Love & Licks,
Stella

Allergies are the pitts!

Allergies, they sure don't look or sound like fun.  Do you have them?  My brother Ozzy does and Mom says it happens every year, about this same time.

This is how Ozzy looks but...

This is how he feels

Oz isn't allowed outside but he loves sitting by an open window, breathing in that cool morning air or in the evenings, watching the light fade from the sky.  His little eyes water and boy, can he sneeze!  We counted eighteen consecutive sneezes yesterday.  Mom had to do the counting once we got past five, that's all the further I've learned so far.


I sure hope I never get allergies... especially not to peanut butter or sweet potatoes, because those are my very favorite treats.

Loves & Licks,
Stella

One Year Anniversary for The Chronicles of Stella

My goodness time goes by quickly.  As of today I've been sharing my adventures for one entire year!  Some of you are old friends and have been along with us, each step of the way.  Some of you are brand new friends and might be interested to see how we got started.  Here's our original post on Facebook, June 16, 2017.

my legs were short & i was only 10 weeks old

I did it, I did it, I did it!  I walked the entire length of Moms walk along the slough this morning... and it was AMAZING.  So many smells and sights and tastes along the way.  I even made a new friend.  He can't bark very well and in fact, it was pretty funny sounding,  but Mom says not to make fun of others differences.  Turns out he had a super power that was the coolest thing ever so next time I'm going to try to strike a deal with him.  I'll teach him how to bark properly if he'll teach me how to fly.

yes, its true, I hid behind Moms leg at first

Loves & Licks~
Stella

Sprinkler Surprise

The very last thing I was expecting at 5:00 am today, was getting to play in some sprinklers. Just my lucky day I guess...  Mom took me to the school track to do some running since she’ll be busy doing human stuff most of the day. We’d never really been to the track this early in the morning before so we didn’t know, that's when the sprinkler system takes off and transforms the track into a water park!  It was great fun and I wish we could have done it for hours and hours and days and days.

Things I learned this morning~

1.  Unexpected things happen, learn to embrace them

2.  Mom's pretty good at throwing my ball straight at the sprinkler heads

3. If you pretend you didn't see where the ball went, Mom gets wet while retrieving it.

4.  Life is good when you're a little black dog

Love & Licks ~ Stella

We ran into a dinosaurus on our morning walk

It was big...  really, really big and had a very loud purr but wasn't mean at all.  It even let a nice man ride on its back and never once tried to come too close to me or Mom.  Turns out all he wanted was to eat the tender weeds that have grown tall along our walking path.  I'd never met a dinosaur before, but now I have and it turns out, they aren't nearly as scary as tv makes them out to be.

Love & Licks ~ Stella

Dino footprints

A Little Black Pups First Day of School ~ Sept. 8, 2017

Do you remember your very first day of school?  Well I do, because it happened TODAY!!!  Mom called it Day Care but.. I stayed there without her, I made lots of new friends, I learned "stuff" and most important... I had fun.  Wow, oh wow did I ever have fun.  Oh, and then, I got to ride the shuttle bus home just like a big kid.  That certainly sounds like school to me.  In addition, I got my picture taken and at the end of the day, I got a report card too.  Here are some pictures to help me explain it all to Mom.  I can hardly wait to go again!!!

Love & Licks ~ Stella

Shuttle aka School Bus

Is this the same as Straight A's?

Coolest place EVER!

Just me, having fun

The Chronicles of Stella~ Whew, I am so happy to be home safe and all in one piece!  I had one heck of a morning.  Picture this...

Mom and I are out walking our regular path trail, just like every morning, when I stop to poke my nose into some of the tall weeds along the paths edge.  I decide to pee just a little, so all my friends will know I've been by when suddenly I realize I have literally piddled off a bunch of snakes and they are NOT happy about it  Mom said it must have been a "nest" of them but I don't think so, it was on the ground, not up in a tree.  Geesh Mom...

Anyhoo, I take off running for my life.  I've seen snakes swallow entire antelopes on tv and as little as I am, it would only take a gulp or two to devour me completely.  Mom tried to explain to me that these aren't the same kind of snakes, that they were harmless and probably just napping in the rays of the early morning sun, just as I like to do too, and that they were most likely scarred of me.  You know, when I was a wee little pup I used to believe everything she said but as I'm growing older and wiser, I find myself thinking "really Mom, are you really sure of that?"  Thankfully I"m a really fast runner and I left those snakes in my dust.

Love & Licks ~ Stella

PS ~ I'm not allowed to watch Wild, Wild Kingdom anymore.

Please allow me to introduce myself

So, I’m guessing that although many of you already know me, because I’ve been blessed with a ton of amazing friends, there may be a few who are brand new acquaintances, which I’m very excited about too.

Back in March of 2017,  I was one of twelve little black pups born to a mom that was a wiener dog~black lab mix and a dad that was a Chihuahua.  Odd combination for sure but thankfully we all turned our pretty darn adorable or at least 

that was the consensus from everyone we met. Due to unfortunate circumstances, our mom was unable to care for us and so my brothers and sister and I were immediately rescued by the Humane Society of Cowlitz County. The very next morning my mom was called to see if she’d be willing to foster a few of us. She’d never done anything like that before but she agreed to come check us out. She started by bottle feeding each one of us and then rubbing our tummies and bottoms to get our digestive tracks working. I was the last pup she nursed and unlike my siblings who were just grateful to fill their tummies with sweet milk, I was a feisty one. I wanted the bottle to be held not too high, not too low but just right. It took twice as long to feed me... but that meant I got held twice as long too.  None of the others had figured out that little trick yet.  Anyhoo, Mom finally agreed to foster me, my only sister and a brother and off we went to Casa de la Risa to begin our new adventures. 

Love & Licks ~ Stella

I guess now, I’m a blogger!



Yes, it’s me, Stella ~  from the Chronicles of Stella fame. Just a little black pup that rescued a middle aged, single lady from a lonely life without a dog. Moms been posting my adventures on her Facebook page for about a year now and I’ve received some wonderful feedback, suggesting I go public, so buckle up, keep your hands safely at your side and let the ride begin...

Love & Licks ~ Stella