Bella’s in the holiday spirit…

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To those of you in the U.S., I hope you have a wonderful July 4th!  It’s been busy around here… I made some patriotic cupcakes and a ridiculous amount of sangria yesterday.  (No joke – I bought a 2 gallon cooler to store it in. Let’s just hope that nobody tries to go total sports fan and dump it on someone’s head as if it were Gatorade.)  In addition, I’ve made some giant submarine sandwiches, and a vat (also not really an exaggeration) of Asian Noodle Salad.  We won’t starve, that’s for sure!

Anyway, no time for a long post, but I wanted to wish all of you a happy 4th of July – I hope you have a fantastic day.  So does Bella… she even dressed for the occasion:

In spite of the holiday, Bella’s nap schedule proceeds as usual.

Happy 4th!

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Take a chance on a shelter pet!

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So, I went to see Mamma Mia last night at one of my favorite outdoor venues.  You can’t really beat sitting outside with friends, munching on snacks and having a glass of wine while enjoying some classic ABBA.  It was such a fun show, and it may have the best pre-show announcement I’ve ever heard.

I’m still humming ABBA songs today… which means that I have to get one stuck in your head too.  It’s blog law. (The law of this particular blog, anyway.  As evidence, see the majority of my song-related post titles.)  However, you’re in luck – the Interwebs has thoughtfully provided me with a video that skillfully combines ABBA and adorable animals with a great message.  Enjoy…

Hope you’re having a fantastic weekend so far!

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Of books and beaches…

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A long weekend… the stuff that dreams are made of.  I don’t have to go back to the office until Wednesday.  In addition to Monday’s holiday, I took Tuesday off as well.  As you can imagine, I’m pretty excited!  But first, I need to send you into the weekend with your usual dose of randomness… 

  1. Today’s punny pet name is LeVar Purrton. Why?  Read on…
  2. You know of my love for Reading Rainbow.  So I’m sure you can understand how excited I was to learn that LeVar Burton is organizing a Reading Rainbow flash mob to raise literary awareness.  Awesome.
  3. In honor of butterflies in the sky and taking a look because it’s in a book, enjoy these photos of 50 animals reading.
  4. There’s nothing better than grabbing a book and relaxing outside (beach, pool, yard… anywhere will do).  If your pool also contained these guinea pigs or these baby elephants having fun, it’d be a pretty perfect day.  Just make sure you have a lifeguard – perhaps of the dog variety?
  5. Are you more of a beach person?  I’ve got you covered: here’s a baby elephant on the beach.  You’re welcome.

Of course I can’t send you into the weekend without a video. Since we’re letting guinea pigs and elephants have some fun, seems like it’s only fair to let dogs in on the action…

Doesn’t that video just make you want to go outside to play with your pup?  

Before I go, I wanted to tell you that I’m trying out a new thing… Bella graciously allows me to stop adoring her for a few moments now and then to do some baking.  Rather than bombard you with recipes and photos here, I’ve created another space for that sort of thing.  Every now and then, you can find me over at I Still Want More Cupcakes, telling you how much I love butter and sugar in addition to puppies.  I hope you’ll stop by sometime. Puppies are still the main event and posting won’t be slowed here, but you’ll get the occasional bonus of some baked goods to ogle.  Win-win, right?

So, what are you up to this weekend?  Whatever it is, I hope you have fun!

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Meow’s the time: adopt a cat!

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The lovely Dawn from afFURmation had the brilliant idea to host a blog hop to promote cat adoption in honor of Adopt-a-Cat Month.  Although Bella’s the star of the show here, our feline friends do make frequent appearances on the blog (and I’ve had a few kitty loves of my own over the years).  Also, I’m never one to pass up a good blog hop… so, I’m joining up and sharing some adoptable cuties today. 

(If you want to join too – pretty please with sugar on top? – check out the information at the end of this post.)

First up, I’d like you to meet Harry Potter, an adoptable cat from the Bethesda/DC area.  As you can see, he has a cool lightning bolt on his forehead, just like his namesake.
Next, I’d like you to meet Xena, who is also available in the DC area.  Unlike the famed warrior princess, this sweet girl just loves to cuddle.
Finally, meet Vivaldi, another DC kitty.  I bet his purring would be like music to your ears.
To find more adoptable kitties, check out the blogs participating in the hop (after the jump) or visit Petfinder.  If you’d like to participate in the blog hop, scoot on over to afFURmation for more information, or link up below.
In parting, I leave you with some words of wisdom from our friend Brian: “Adopt cats, we deserve it!”
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So You Think You’re a Dog

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It’s Friday!  Time to send you into the weekend with some happy, happy, joy, joy!  Let’s get to it…

  1. This week’s punny pet name is only for the most debonair of pups: Spaniel Craig.
  2. Anyone here watch Parks & Recreation?  If so, I have a treat for you: Dogs That Look Like Tom Haverford.  (I think this one might be my favorite.)
  3. Need more? Fine. Here’s some cats that look like Ron Swanson. (I love you, Internet.)
  4. I already shared this link on Twitter… but in case you missed it, I need to share it with you too.  I read it three times yesterday and laughed like a crazy woman each and every time: “And that’s why you should learn to pick your battles” by The Blogess.  I will be quoting this blog post years from now.  My friends will beg me to stop, but I won’t be able to.  Also, she has a cat named Ferris Mewler… could it get any better?
  5. A cat impersonating a dog? Yup, that happened.  A robot impersonating a dog?  That did too.
  6. Now for dessert, enjoy these cakes from the ’80s… er, I mean, ’80s themed cakes. I’m not asking you to stare at desserts that are two decades old, I promise.

From now on, I think we should dance our way into every weekend.  As an additional bonus, this video helps me forget about my dancing-related irritation over this week’s So You Think You Can Dance results show.  Anyone else?


(via Best Week Ever… which I keep accidentally typing as Vest Week Ever.  Note to self – come up with concept for that title.)

I figured I’d give you a quick dose of dancing dogitude to send you into the weekend, but if you’re not satisfied, go watch the world’s preeminent Chihuahua flamenco dancer do his thing.

Have a fantastic weekend (and join the Saturday Pet Bloggers Blog Hop, after the jump)!

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Paw-fice Space

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Tomorrow is  Take Your Dog to Work Day!  As I discussed last year, Bella cannot come to work with me, but you know what they say – those who can, do; those who can’t, blog about it anyway!   So, even though Bella and I will not be participating (the closest we’ll ever get is when Bella hangs out under my feet when I work from home), that won’t stop me from sharing a few links!

Cleo over at Grouchy Puppy makes a convincing case for dogs in the workplace.  There are so many hardworking dogs out there helping to prove her point…. in fact, some of our blog friends – including One Pibble’s Wish – are ready to show off their typing skills!  Although there are some puppies who sleep on the job, you shouldn’t hold that against all potential canine employees.

Not sure if taking your dog to work is for you, or where to start?  Two Little Cavaliers has some tips for talking to your boss about this issue.  You can also check out this handy list of things to know before taking your dog to work (courtesy of BlogPaws) and some more great tips from the All Things Dog Blog.  Banjo & Millie also provided a wealth of information about the benefits of pets in the workplace – I encourage you to check it out!

Finally, I leave you with a video that seemed perfect for today’s post:

Are you taking your pup to the office tomorrow?

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Your mission: caption this photo

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Hope your creative juices are flowing today – most entertaining wins my everlasting affection. (Perhaps I need to think up a better prize.)  Anyway, have at it…

Oh, and I wanted to let you know that afFURmation is sponsoring a blog hop for Adopt a Cat Month on Monday, June 27.  Bella’s always willing to help out her feline friends, so we’ll be participating – hope you will too!

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Too many awesome pet blogs, too little time…

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As I mentioned yesterday, the fabulous blogs Something Wagging This Way Comes and Kol’s Notes recently gave this blog the Versatile Blogger Award.  So, I’m doing my duty and passing it along…

First and foremost, thanks again to Something Wagging and Kol’s Notes for sharing this award with me.  I highly recommend you pay them a visit – both blogs are great!  Bella and I are humbled to be in such company…

The rules: I have to tell you seven things about myself and then choose fifteen other blogs that deserve the award. (One set of rules said newly-discovered, and the other set just said versatile, so I’m making up my own rule and just choosing fifteen blogs I always enjoy… though it’s hard to narrow it down to just fifteen.  As you can see from the blogroll at right, I enjoy a lot of blogs!)

The last time I did something like this, I shared some puppy-related items about myself and some things about Bella. So, this time I decided to use my seven things to tell you a little more about me (the non-dog related stuff). Here we go:

  1. My favorite food is grilled cheese.
  2. I’m a voracious reader… I go through books at a pretty fast pace.  In fact, I just started a new book last night (the fifth book in the Southern Vampire Mysteries), and finished it this evening.  Hours need to be subtracted for sleep, work, commuting, and dinner, during which reading was not an option.  Another recent example? I finished all three Hunger Games books in 3 days.  When I get into a book, it’ll be gone in no time.  Tina Fey’s Bossypants is next in my sights.
  3. I never thought I’d want an e-reader, but I love my Kindle.
  4. I love writing song parodies (as you may have guessed from my recent post about the Pupperazzi).  Although I can’t really sing, I can’t help myself!
  5. I love outdoor concerts.  And wine.  Especially outdoor concerts that allow you to bring wine.
  6. I enjoy movies… and musicals.  Thus, I was in geek heaven yesterday when I went with a friend to see Stephen Sondheim’s Company at the movie theater.  So far this summer, I’ve already seen a production of Follies (apparently I’m in a Sondheim kind of mood lately), and will be seeing Wicked  and Mamma Mia again soon.  I’m sure there will be other performances in my future as well…
  7. I can relate pretty much anything back to Saved by the Bell and Beverly Hills, 90210.  It’s one of my… talents?

Whew… hope you made it through my rambling.  Now, to the fun part!  I’m passing this award onto the following blogs:

Don’t count… I may have cheated a little. Honestly, this was way too hard and there were so many others I wanted to mention, so if I didn’t list you above, please don’t be offended!  Perhaps I need some sort of regular feature where I heap all sorts of compliments upon all you wonderful pet bloggers out there, so that I’m not leaving anyone out.  Stay tuned, my lovely readers – the wheels are turning on this one!

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