Cody correction: Chiweenie

I have a correction to make about what kind of dog Cody is - Kristy, my daughter, had told me he "has a face like a German Shephard puppy."  I thought she said he was part German Shephard.  Chihuahua/German Shephard mix - well, I'll leave that one alone.

They think he is part Chihuahua and part Dachshund.  This mix is called a "Chiweenie."  That's a new one on me!  I've never heard of it, but I guess with so many Chihuahuas now, we are going to get all kinds of new blends.  Here he is again, with granddaughter, Lauren, in the background--I recognize the shirt. : )

Cody

Kristy and the kids, Andrew and Lauren, Skyped me today and I got to see Cody in person - or at least on the screen.  He is so cute.  He IS very calm but can run fast and was playing with the kids, running after his ball -  they were screaming and laughing and running.  Cody plays really well with the kids, and they were very good with him. 

I can't wait to see how he and Katie get along.  Katie plays and runs with people, but I've never seen her play with another dog.  We'll be there a few days over Mother's Day, so Katie and Cody will have a chance to get to know each other.  Katie has never spent time with another animal since I've had her.

I was looking at Kristy's Facebook for a new photo of Cody, but the one above is the only one there, sorry for the repeat.  But I found a few new ones of my granddaughter, Lauren - couldn't resist:

 Lauren at the Park

 

Isn't that hair just great?!?

That's all for tonight - good grief - it's almost midnight.  Sleep well, everyone, from me and Katie! : )

My new dog-faced grandson & Happy St. Patrick's Day

We have a new addition to the family!  When my daughter Kristy e-mailed me about a new family addition, I saw the subject line and thought, a Baby???  A new room in the house???  Well, the new addition is a dog.  They have been wanting a dog for a long time.  My granddaughter, Lauren, three, just LOVES Katie.  Andrew, almost 6, likes her okay, but pretty much stays away from Katie.

 My dog-faced grandson, Cody

So, last weekend they were at the pet shelter and saw this little guy, who was perfect for them.  They named him Cody, he's  a four year old rescue dog, part Chihuahua (his body and legs) and German Shepherd (his head and face).  Isn't he cute?  He looks like a puppy.  Kristy said even Andrew loves him, so he must be a winner.  Kristy said he has a really nice nature, and in two days they haven't heard him bark.  They are sooo lucky - that's Katie's only real fault - she's a barker (but getting better).

I'm sure Lauren and Andrew are really enjoying Cody.  I'm driving up to visit them for Mother's Day, so I will get to meet him then. And Katie will meet her new ... nephew?

 These are the BEST Irish Coffees - at the Buena Vista in San Francisco.

Have a wonderful St. Patrick's Day, everyone, from me and Katie!  Irish Coffee, anyone?  : )

An early Easter Bunny Katie

A BIG WELCOME to three new followers:

David, who is "off to Mexico" soon.  His is a new blog and tells the tale of getting "Dod" ready for travel.  Here is what Dod looked like when he bought it:  "the cab over section had been pushed in about 6" by a low tree branch; the windshield was cracked; one tire was flat; the battery was dead (really dead); the spark plug wires had been chewed by mice; the carpet was filthy; there was an odor reminiscent of a tom cat..."  This is a man with gumption!  I love it.  Actually it's a really cute looking RV.  Dod is a Dodge missing the ge from the nameplate.  So far I have really enjoyed this blog!

Donna K, who will be traveling with her husband, Russ and two dogs in a beautiful new Lazy Daze named "Therapy."  They've had a large RV carport built in their driveway to house their new RV.  Now they are figuring out where to spend the month of April in the new rig.  Sounds like fun!

and,

Melissa33 - I don't see a blog listed for you, Melissa.  If you have one, or start blogging, let me know and I'll follow along with you, too.

Thanks for becoming followers to you all!

We're a bit early, but here's Katie's new Easter outfit:

Little Katie Bunny

She actually walked around the patio then around the living room with these ears on.  Then...a good shake, and goodbye, ears!  She is such a good sport, as you all know. : )

My grandson, Gavin, came for a visit yesterday.  As usual we were busy all day, played with the Wii, then took a photo shoot walk to the lake.  I gave Gavin my old camera to use, and it was amazing how quickly he got it.  Hold the camera in both hands, look into the view finder, use one finger to adjust the distance, hold still and push down the button.  That's a lot for a six year old to learn and he got it instantly.  These kids have such good hand/eye coordination because of all their electronic games!  So we snapped away on the way to the lake.  He took a photo of some flowers in my walkway, an American flag in a neighbor's front yard, and a self portrait among others.  

 Self Portrait

Katie and Gavin

We fed the ducks,walked over for lunch outside on the patio of the cafe by the lake (outside because Katie was with us).  Gavin got compliments from the waitress for being so well behaved.  Katie, too.  The waitress asked if Katie was friendly, and I said yes, so she bent over and petted her, obviously a dog lover.  She said Saturday a woman was there sitting on the patio for lunch, and she had her Chihuahua with her.  The dog was really "snappy," and tried to bite the waitress.  Then she said, "Actually the woman was pretty snappy, herself!"  Like owner, like dog.  Funny.

 The Mickey Mouse Pancakes - Gavin's lunch

Coming in for a landing...and some bread.

Two ducks and a seagull all going for the bread.

Then we walked home, Gavin found a couple of hiding places in the bushes around my condo, then he played the Wii again while I downloaded the photos he took.  I printed them out after he left and he got them today.

 Gavin in a secluded spot behind the bushes

A good time was had by all.  I was asleep before 7:00, totally knocked out, so was Katie.  And today I was sore from all the exercise.  Katie and I have been waaaaay too sedentary during the winter months.  But still, I don't know why I'm so totally beat after a day with a grandchild.  Maybe because it's constant activity.  And the fact that I'm 60 years older than Gavin.  : )

From Me and My Dog, Katie, have a great Monday evening, everyone!  : )

The Owl USTREAM video

I don't know if you have noticed the owls at the bottom of my blog.  It's a real time video of an owl nesting box in Oceanside, CA.  This is all new to me, but a woman I work with was ga-ga over this owl family last year, and this year I started watching it.  It's a USTREAM - I guess like a small camera that goes 24/7 and records what's going on.  I'd love to have one in my condo during the day so I could see what Katie is doing.  Kind of like a Nanny Cam.

Anyway, this female owl, Sydney sits in the nest and over a couple of weeks lays 7 eggs. Aproximately every other day.  Six have hatched, one was not viable.  During the night the male owl, Mel, brings her food, like mice, gophers, rabbits, etc.  Now that she has baby owls, she feeds them and is teaching them to feed themselves.  I've learned so much from the woman at work and the comment section on the side of the streaming video.  These are beautiful birds, and their babies look like prehistoric animals.  Dinosaur birds.

 Here's Sydney with an owlet peeking out.

 Sydney is moving around.  You can see unhatched eggs and some owlets.

When this photo was captured, there were three babies and three eggs.

Notice the food that Mel brought her during the night.

During the day it's clear and very interesting, the night cam isn't as good, but they are still pretty active.  Poor Sydney, she was sitting on these seven eggs, all was well, now they are hatched and getting bigger every day, starting to grow feathers, wiggling around constantlly, and every time she sits down, one of them is popping out a head or a tail.  Sometimes it's really funny! : )

The box starts out plain wood, but as you can see, she now has a soft lining of fur for her babies to nestle in.  You don't wanna know!  Unless you have a strong stomach or a real interest in the way birds nest.  But it is fascinating.  Nature is wierd and wonderful.

That's it for today - from me and Katie, have a great Wednesday, everyone! : )

Happy Birthday, Katie, Air Chair and moderating comments

Katie's birthday was Sunday, February 20, and she is now 5.

  

I wanted to show you a photo of my Air Chair, which I mentioned in a previous post.  During the winter I take it down, and when the rain stops I hang it back up.  There's a bolt in one of the studs of my overhang on the patio that is strong enough to hold the chair with a person sitting in it.

It's the most comfortable chair!  There is a separate "hammock" that your feet rest on, arm rests, and a cup holder.  It swings, or you can just sit back and relax with your feet up.

In a past job I used to work the local homeshow for my company, and there were two things I wanted, an Air Chair and a VitaMix blender.  My boss told me to go over and talk to the salespeople and ask if I could buy one at a discount that they were using for demonstrations during the show.  They sold them for less at the end of the show.  If I was the first person to ask, I'd get it.  I guess they use new ones for each show, and selling the demonstration unit was a good deal for them and me.

That's how I got both my Air Chair and my VitaMix, both of which I've had for years and love.
 
I think I forgot to mention that I had the comment moderation turned on now - I did that because of all the spam I was getting and I was worried that might have something to do with the hacking issues (or whatever the heck that was).  Probably caused by something totally different, but it was suggested that I use the moderation just in case.  Sorry for the extra step, I hated having to do it, but thank you for hanging in there and leaving the comments.  I actually forgot about it and when I checked today and I had no comments.  Gone too long?  Everyone's forgotten me?  Then I went into the comment section to see if I had spam to delete and there were lots of comments to moderate!  That was something new.  Lo and Behold - Comments!  So, thank you.

From Me and My Dog, Katie, have a great Tuesday evening, everyone! : )