A Tale of Two Kitties. (Okay, Really, Cats. Sorta.)

Rita "met" two "cats" this past Sunday. Normally, she hates cats, which you may recall if you've been following the blog for ages, because there was the time we took her to visit my sis, and Rita went ape over not only the actual cat in the house, but also this stone cat looking down from a bookshelf.

Around Here, We Love An Under Dog

We usually cheer for the underdog here at our house. That doesn't always work out too well (take the recent Super Bowl for instance...). But we do have a particular favorite "under" dog...

Here she is under "cover":

Tap-Dancing Dog

This girl LOVES to play with her Himalayan cheese chews. Almost as much as she likes to eat them. (Those of you who are on Instagram have probably already seen this.)

Love that entrance!

Better A Beach Day That Starts Bad And Ends Well

A couple of weeks ago, we had a day at the beach that started out great and ended badly. (Due to a DADO* with his uncontrollable dog off leash at the on-leash beach.) But I don't want to talk about that because it makes my blood pressure go up. Instead... let's visit a day at the beach that started out badly and ended much better!

The other day, we got to the beach and it was not only super foggy, it was really high tide. Like, only-a-narrow-slip-of-beach-to-run-on-in-some-places high. There was tons of stinky seaweed all over the beach. (Dog heaven, right?)

At Least The End Is Getting Closer

We've had a wee break from the construction for our kitchen remodel, for various reasons, but now that that workers are back, Rita just... can't... even...

Ruff! Wait... Roof?!

When you're out on a walk, and you hear barking, and you turn to look...

...and the barking dog is on the roof!

Stress-Eating Our Way Through the Remodel

As I mentioned last week, we've just started a kitchen remodel. And, naturally, Rita and I are both finding it stressful.

I have to keep Rita closed up in the back half of the house since she doesn't like strange men in the house (neither do I; and even if she did like them, they're constantly coming and going out to their trucks and leaving the door open, so either way - she's on lock-down).

She's mostly okay, but when she hears them talking too loud (or whistling - she HATES whistling for some reason!), she gets upset and starts barking.

A little shot of spray-cheese is just the thing to take the edge off and put her in a much calmer mood!

Under Construction... Almost

We here at Chez Pooch Smooches are on the eve of a kitchen renovation. (Ugh.)

Rita and I have donned our safety goggles and hardhats (not pictured) and are ready for the work to begin!

It's Like Living With a Mastiff Sometimes

My nephew Leo the mastiff often goes around with a drool rag tucked into his collar. He's a big sweetie - and he's also a big drooler!

Here he is demonstrating two techniques at once - the "strand" and the "bubble." Impressive.

Good job, Leo! (Photo credit: my bro)

New Dog Picture Books for the Collection

Happy New Year everyone! Hope you had a nice holiday season. Ours was lovely with too much food but lots of long walks (and a few runs) to try to counteract all the calories. Now it's back to the ol' routine...

I thought I'd share a couple of fun dog picture books we got for Christmas. We have a lot of dog books, but there's always room for more, right?

First of all, thanks to Jan at The Poodle (and Dog) Blog for mentioning Zen Dogs by Alex Cearns before Christmas. I got a copy for the hubs for one of his presents.

LOVE the cover!

Shepherds Keeping Watch

Since we have our own little shepherd (mix), I wanted to do a shepherd-themed card this year, and this is what I came up with:

Shepherds Keeping Watch...

Good Fences Make Good Neighbors

I thought of the phrase "good fences make good neighbors"** when I took this photo of Rita checking out a neighbor's hens.

December Dog Photo Challenge - Plus Bloopers!

Rita and I decided to join Spencer the Goldendoodle's December Dog Photo Challenge for a fun way to be inspired this month with our photos that we post on Instagram and Facebook. (It's not too late to join! Check out the link to Spencer's page and join us!)

I thought I'd share some of the bloopers today! (We always have many since Rita isn't in love with getting her picture taken. And, wow, I can't believe how long it's been since I posted twice in one week! I'm really enjoying my new once/week schedule, but I wanted to share this before December was half over!)

The other day, the word was SWEATER. With Rita's thick coat + our San Diego weather, she's not a sweater girl, so instead I had her pose with #bearsinsweaters. I got this adorable photo:

Easy Xmas Craft: Scrabble Tile Ornaments

If you've been a blog reader for a while, you know my sisters and I get together every now and then for what we call "forced crafting." (It's like a forced march - you will participate. And you will enjoy it, dammit.)

You might also remember the last time we did a Scrabble tile craft, it involved dogs (we made pendants for necklaces and earrings):

Remember these guys?

Forget Puss in Boots; It's Pup in Socks!

My niece is a graphic artist (okay, technically she brands herself as a "professional weirdo"). Here we are snap-chatting at her wedding earlier this year. (I do not snap-chat, but my niece does and of course, knowing me as she does, she knew the dog filter would be the most appropriate.)