Thanksgiving is delicious!

Ohhhhhh yea, I'm remembering this day now.  This is the day when wonderful smells fill my house and then when I go outside, the air smells delicious there too - it's Thanksgiving!  Oh, I have great memories of this day last year and I had no idea that I'd get to experience it all over AGAIN!  What a lucky pup am I.

So I believe there was a rule to this game.  Something like you have to share three things you are grateful for before you can take your first bite of food.  I don't want to take any chances so I'm going to name four instead, just to be safe.  I like that it makes you stop and really think for a minute or two of all the amazing things in your life.  Finding four was easy-peasy so I'm fairly certain you can decide on three without much effort.  So let's get this show on the road because my mouth is watering and there's food that needs eating.  Here's mine~

1.) I am thankful for folks who leave bits and pieces of their food on the ground down by the river or around the trail.  I'm always so far ahead of Mom that she never even knows that I've been finding little munchies along the way.  If by some accident or fluke of nature she does spot the food first, she uses this silly "leave it" command and I'm not even allowed to get as much as a sniff of it. Just for the record, I am not thankful for that particular command.

2.) I am especially appreciative of homemade treats, especially the oven-dried sweet potato slices, they are my absolute favorite.  No, no that's not quite true.  The peanut butter & coconut oil paw candies are the best of the best, yup the very bestest.  But then there's the bacon grease carrot cookies that are magnificently delicious.... ohhhhhh, I can't decide.  I am thankful for them all.

3.) Ok, this one is kinda hard to admit out loud so don't go spreading it around town but, I'm thankful for my feline siblings.  That pains me to say because they are so darn annoying but truth be told, I enjoy having them around.  I love chasing them through the house and scaring them while they are napping.  It would get a bit lonely as the only hairy kid in the house so yea, I am... cough... cough... cough... thankful for the cats.

4.) New toys, I am always grateful for new toys to play with.  I just about get one really broken in, just the way I like it when suddenly it disappears.  The strange thing eventually reappears but when it does, all of their tears and cuts have healed up and they are almost like new again.  It's kinda like a miracle, don't you think?

So, my list is complete even though I could easily add many more.  In fact, there is one more that simply must be included.

5.)  I am immensely thankful for each of you that chooses to spend a few minutes with me by reading what I have to say.  You are all awesome and I appreciate your friendship.

And now I'd like to wish you all a most delicious feast followed by one of the best food induced coma-like naps ever.

Love & Licks,
Stella

Love is in the air!

I'm so excited, I'm giggling on the inside and just about ready to burst.  Can you keep a secret?

 I HAVE A BOYFRIEND!!!!!  Yup, I do and he's so big and strong and fast and handsome.  We met  during our morning walks and found we have so much in common... he likes to chase waves, and so do I.  He likes to run in big circles on the beach, and so do I.  He likes to occasionally pretend not to hear his dad giving commands and so do I...  and he really loves to pee on stuff and so do I!  How much more perfectly matched could we possible be?

So... his name is Raven and he's a black lab, the same age as me.  He's the product of "in vitro fertilization" which I have no idea what is but Mom assures me it makes him extra special.  Heck, I already knew that.  She says she'll explain it in finer detail when I'm older.  We are still in the getting to know each other better stage but so far, I think he's pretty darn perfect and a whole lotta fun too which is at the very tippy top of my list.

Besides romance, there's been a lot going on down by the river.  When we arrived to find this gigantic creature sitting near where we park, I wasn't sure whether to be scared or just curious. Mom said it is called a cat but it sure isn't like the ones that live at our house.  I approached it with some trepidation but it didn't even try to make a move.  No snarling, no purring, not a thing.  Maybe it was asleep so I  decided to just let it be and made my way down to the water.

Speaking of the water... just look at the huge river creature that's decided to make its home there.  I'd never seen anything quite like it and I needed to know more.  Unfortunately Mom didn't have a clue, but thankfully Raven's dad did.  He said the creature was a sand pumper that moves the sand from the bottom of the river, over to the island in order to keep the center of the river deep enough to allow those big ships to pass by.  That's really important because those big ships make big waves and I love to chase those big waves down the beach.  Thank you Mr. Sandpumper, you are a good, good friend indeed.

I also just might possibly be a real life hero now.  I try to always stay alert during our adventures, keeping an eye out for sharks and such.  Imagine my shock when I found myself face to face with a humongous cobra that was hanging out on the beach.  It was poised to strike at any minute so I barked like my life depended on it, because basically it did, and my ferocious warning froze him in his tracks.  He allowed us to pass right by him without any further confrontation, safe and sound and able to enjoy yet another day.  I guess I can add snake charmer to my resume, right behind life saving hero.

Loves & Licks,
Stella

Bits of this and that

Walks along the dike, the river or even the lake in the center of our town... those are all fun and interesting places to burn off some energy but let me tell you, they all pale in comparison to my favorite home away from home.  Up North from us in Toledo, WA is a most amazing place called Paws & Stay and on special occasions I get to go there to spend the night and hang out with my dog friends. 

Nothing quite compares to getting to run through the forest with your pack.  With just over five acres to explore, there's always something new to discover.  Being in the woods reminds me that I am a dog and I'm proud of it, kinda like you being being proud of being German or Irish.  I think spending time around big trees, wide open skies and even getting a little rain sprinkled on your head is probably good for everyone but I know for an absolute fact, its good for me.

One of the bestest things about spending time by the river is getting to see what new treasures have washed up on the sand each morning.  Today's discovery was really, really cool... an actual car seat!   ending time by the river is getting to see what new treasures have washed up on the sand each morning.  Today's discovery was really, really cool... an actual car seat!  Pretty certain it was from a Volkswagen too which makes it even more special.  I had a great time sitting on it, waiting for Mom to catch up to me and oh, the wonderful smells it emitted.  I sure wish the seats in our car smelled like that.  You just never know what you might find.

According to the commercials on tv, there are some pretty important holidays coming up.  I believe the first one is called Thanksgiving and Mom says its a time to reflect on all of the goodness in our lives that surround us each and every day.  I've been thinking about that and I'm interested in what you might be most thankful for.  My list would be long so let's just leave it at LOVE.  I think that sums it all up nicely.

Love & Licks,
Stella