Rainy day blues

Posted on May 28, 2012 by

It’s been raining on and off for almost a week now.

Mum’s happy because her garden is greening up and growing fast. Flowers have even begun to bloom.

Flax flowers

Me, I’m not so impressed. Sure, rainy days mean more couch snuggling but…………..

I still haven’t won the war on being allowed to do my business in the house where civilized folk (and Pugs) should be allowed to go.  So out I go in the long, wet grass (the humans haven’t been able to mow due to rain) and get soaked from my toes right up to my belly. The grass gets me from underneath and then the rain pours down on me from up top. By the time I can come in the house I’m wet and cold and shivering.

Still no indoor potty oasis for me, sadly.

The humans have taken pity on me so far as to make sure I’m bundled, cuddled and warmed up when I come in. They don’t even complain that I smell like a wet dog – much.

All bundled up in warm blankets The Will’s fleecy

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Wordless Wednesday – Going nowhere fast

Posted on May 23, 2012 by

It’s Wednesday and time to head over to BlogPaws for their Wordless Wednesday Blog Hop.

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1000 Pugs photo shoot – It just gets better and better

Posted on May 17, 2012 by

Day 2 continued:

So yesterday I was telling you all about my special 1000 Pugs photo shoot with Amanda. She could see that I was beginning to feel pretty ragged and really needed a boost. A quick call was made and before I knew it a vehicle pulled up to the curb.

Do you  know who jumped out?  Can you guess?

Puglet – in the fur

OMP!

Puglet? The Puglet? Are you kidding me?

If I had any ego at all, I might feel threatened by such a supermodel, but quite frankly, it made my day.

You may not know this about me, but I can be spooked my new experiences and places – every now and then. The one thing that helps ease my insecurity is doing new things with a pal.

Benches are less scary with friends

More treats? Well, I don’t mind if I do.

When I was in puppy classes just after I was rescued, I was so scared of all the big dogs in my class and their humans, and the instructor, and the smells, and the loud noises and……. Well you get the point. Then my foster-sister started coming to the classes JUST to keep me company and show me there was nothing to be scared of. Because of her, I graduated at the top of my class.

But I digress.

Once Puglet joined us, suddenly the impossible was possible. I was able to hang out in a planter without having to sit on mum’s feet…… and the plants still didn’t eat me up. I even  conquered the slippery plastic chair that had nearly caused a melt down earlier.

Sabrina and Puglet in the plants

I have heard that sometimes Puglet can get a little jealous of his treats and of other pugs posing for his Nikon. I didn’t see any of that side. He was a complete gentleman and a great mentor. Together we posed on scary stairs, in plants beside poles and with sandwich boards. We even got sassy and barked at passing dogs.

Hey Pug, check out that Weimaraner! I bet she thinks she’s all that and a bag of treats.

Puglet really is something special. He makes super modeling look so easy. His presence is larger than life. He knows how to pose just so for optimum cuteness and has no fear. It is just so obvious that he loves what he does and that he adores his human. I have no doubt that he would follow her to the ends of the earth – and then Jimmy on the edge for the photo-op. Together, they  are the perfect combination of talent and I can’t believe I got to spend an afternoon hanging out and learning from them.

** Mum’s note: The above pictures are ones I took under Amanda’s guidance and with her permission. I am sure there is no way Sabrina will get to appear in the 1000 Pugs posing with Puglet so here is the only place I’ll get to enjoy these pictures with you. I can’t convey how great an experience this day with Amanda was for me. She went way above and beyond and the memories are ones I’ll cherish forever. It’s an honour to share them with you.

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My 1000 Pugs photo shoot

Posted on May 16, 2012 by

Day 2 continued:

After a long, but delightful lunch with Payton’s ‘rents it was finally my turn to meet Puglet‘s very talented human, Amanda for my 1000 Pugs photo shoot. She truly is a kindred soul. I saw that the second she greeted me so in reply I gave her one of my palm-kisses – reserved for my very favorite people.

During the Kickstarter phase, mum had purchased a very special package for me – and for her too, I guess. Rather than the 15 minute sitting most other Pugs were getting, this package gave us 3 whole hours in a combination photo shoot and photography lesson. Mum wanted to make sure I had enough time to get comfortable with my surroundings and with a different person photographing me, and she knew there was no way 15 minutes would be enough.

Oh, and she knew that taking a photography lesson from Amanda would be a once in a lifetime experience she just couldn’t turn down.

How this worked was we’d all go find a backdrop that would show off my cuteness and then the humans would sit and talk about photography and dogs while I’d decide if the location was acceptable. As soon as I gave the nod (or even if i didn’t) they’d both start clicking away, asking me to look here, look there, tilt my head just so and work the camera.

And work it I did.

In planters…..

If you look at the bottom right of the picture, you’ll see mum’s foot. That was the ONLY way I was getting in that planter.

…..on stairs, on super scary decks…..

….. and in somewhat dirty stairwells.
A lot of the locations were way out of my comfort zone , but Amanda went slow and gave me lots of treats to reward me for giving it the old college try. She pushed me more than mum ever would, but never more than I could handle.

Just when I started to feel a little tired and ragged, I got the best surprise that gave me the energy to really shine.

** Mum’s note: The above pictures are ones I took under Amanda’s guidance. Although I am very happy with them. I cannot wait to see Amanda’s creative perspective on the same locations and almost the same angles. Oh for any hockey fans out there, yes that is a Winnipeg Jets tag on her collar. Sabrina and I are proud to represent!

It’s Wednesday and time to head over to BlogPaws for their Wordless Wednesday Blog Hop.

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Lunch with friends from the south

Posted on May 15, 2012 by

Day 2:

On the day of my 1000 Pugs photo shoot, the sky was overcast. All week the forecast had been calling for rain and even thunder showers for that day. When getting ready to go, mum made sure to pack her lucky umbrella.  The umbrella really earned its reputation, I tell you.

Although our photo shoot wasn’t until 2:00 pm, mum had made plans to meet Payton‘s ‘rents, Christy & Tim for an early lunch. To avoid major stressing and possible melt-down on mum’s part (did I tell you she had a nightmare that she totally missed the shoot by an hour and was still in Winnipeg when she realized her mistake? Can you say panic attack?) we agreed to meet at the cafe where she was supposed to meet for the shoot – 3 hours later. Harley and Hannah came as well. They were scheduled just before us.

It was really cool to sit (in the perfect weather), hang out with friends – new and old – and watch all the pugs (and other dogs too) go by.

Me and Christy and mum

The Winnipeg gang – The Will, Linda with Harley, Lorraine with Hannah and me with mum

We must have been the popular table because we were joined by none other than Puglet himself! Can you believe it? What a sweet and handsome boy he is.

He was way more concerned with waiting for his human to notice the star-struck wall flower hiding under her mum’s chair <—— ME.

Keeping everything and everyone on track was Tiffy’s mum. I got all excited when I found out she’d come all the way to Minneapolis to lend a hand. Sadly, Tiffy did not make the trip and had been left at home. I would have loved to have met her too.

Payton’s ‘rents are the sweetest, nicest couple ever. You can’t help but fall on love with them.  They brought me two wonderful toys – skinneezes that had belonged to Payton; a skunk and a duck.  With Payton gone, the toys held too many memories and seeing them just makes them miss her more. So they’ve decided to give them away to her blogging pals to enjoy. I never got to meet Payton in the fur, but the toys have her scent and allow me to feel like she is playing with them, right there beside me.

Me and Christy

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Now entering Minneapolis

Posted on May 14, 2012 by

What a trip!  There is so much to tell about my adventure and photo shoot for 1000 Pugs, I’m going to have to break it up over a few days.

Day one:
Minneapolis is FAR away from my home. We ate breakfast in the car, stopped for lunch and then kept driving. I was beginning to worry that we were going to have to eat supper in the car too. I spent the bulk of the day sleeping in the back of the car in my Sock Monkey bed. Yea, I that’s how I roll.

But I’m getting ahead of myself.

Hannah, Harley and me in front of the windy restaurant in Fargo, ND

We met up with Harley, Hannah and their peeps in Fargo for lunch. The restaurant wouldn’t allow Pugs inside and it was way too windy sitting at the outside tables so The Will found us a sheltered patch of grass and we had a picnic. And then it was back in the car.

Finally, after what felt like days later, we finally arrived at the Minneapolis hotel. The nice thing about our hotel is the long stretch of grass in the pet area, complete with patio furniture and BBQ’s.

The bad thing is that the hotel is SCARY!

The lobby with its slippery tile floor is scary, all the new smells are scary all the corridors are scary and the worst of all – the elevator – I thought I was going to die!

So scary in fact, I had to stay with Harley & Hannah when the humans went out for dinner. So scary, that I barely slept my first night there. And it took until close to midnight before I felt OK enough to eat my dinner.

Sometimes it’s no fun being a sensitive Pug.

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Leaving in a fast car

Posted on May 10, 2012 by

Poppy went to Auntie Jessica’s last night. I’m going to tell her she got to start her holiday early.

The car is all packed and we are ready to go. I’m hoping to meet Harley and Hannah in Fargo for lunch and then straight on to Minneapolis. We’ll be there in time for dinner.

The Will has a very fast car. He has promised that once we finish lunch, he’ll put the pedal to the metal we’ll be there in no time.

I’ve never been outside of the province, let alone the country. I can’t believe this is actually happening!

So far it’s calling for rain all day on Friday. I really hope my 1000 Pugs photo shoot with Amanda isn’t going to be a wet one, but I’ll suck it up and make the best of it if it is.

 

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