Liddy's Year in Review

On Sunday (1-15-12), I turned 12 and I’m just hitting my prime. This year has been quite the adventure with and without the Food Lady (Ya’ll know her as Whitney, but let’s use FL for short). Birthdays are time of reflection of what I’ve learned this year; what did I do that I really liked; looking ahead to a new adventure.

So, you ask, “what does a dog learn?” After I mastered, sit, lay, roll over, and paw in 2007, the Food Lady stopped our morning school. She obviously realized I excelled at learning but here are a few observations from my 11 years on earth.

• You don’t have to like Mondays. I hate Mondays and at 12 I don’t think I’ll ever start liking them until the FL gets to start taking me to work whose chances are somewhere between slim and never going to happen. Don’t worry; she’s working on a mental condition so I can be her therapy dog. Ya’ll know she’s crazy enough to pull it off.
• Running like you don’t have a care in the world is really good medicine for the soul. I’m getting a little older and my body parts don’t work like the used to. I run on three legs because of my knee caps, but I love every minute of time outside with FL. I especially loves when the takes me in a car to a park or hiking. 




Me and the family on a hike near Highlands, NC


• The best friend you’ll ever have has thumbs (and is your sugar-mama). Seriously, I will cut you if you try and take her….she’s mine and that is that. I haven’t forgiven her for posting the hippo video on youtube or certain pictures she posted on Facebook. Forgiveness is a process and revenge is so much more fun.
• Oral hygiene is important. Due to some poor oral care from my previous years and because I’m a yorkie, I am starting to lose some teeth, but I don’t let it stop me from eating all my favorite foods—bacon, raw veggies, cooked veggies and GREENIES. I also don’t let my questionable breath stop me from playing my favorite human game—sneak my serpent tongue into a facial orifice. (Apparently, my breath is rank to you humans—trust me in the dog world it smells like roses. I love to roll around in bird poop so I know what I’m talking about.)

Hair only a mother could love

• It takes a village to keep me in the level of care I am accustomed to. I am so thankful to all the people who watch me while Food Lady has to work late or is out of town especially since I’m scared to fly. FL has been going to Houston a lot….planes…not my thing. You all do a great job and I really know I’m loved (even though every time FL comes to pick me up I go into my high pitch bark---I’m just telling her how much of a good time I had and how much I missed her). A special thanks to Mary Perez (and Rob Dooley), Jennifer Daniel (and boys--Ian, Conner and Spencer), Nicole Storey, Kelly Bennett, Ronnie Husbands, Cory Barnes, Charlie Rulick and Anna Frueler.

As far as what I was up to in 2011….Here is a short recap.

Let’s begin with and end. Last year the Food Lady and some of her friends who have four-legged friends of mine threw me an absolute bash for my 11th birthday. We had so much so that I won’t need a party again for another year. Below are a few pictures from that party:

Can you see me?  This is my hunting jacket and it is ever so warm.

I had so much fun I passed out at my own party

Some friends playing at my party

Charlotte had one of the coldest winters on record and I spent more time in a sweater than I really wanted. I prefer au naturelle .

(Note this picture is from 2010, but you are smart people I think you will get the drift.)

In the spring several humans got married—Emily and Jonathan; Whitney and Tim; Jarrett and Bryce; Chad and Stacy. I wasn’t invited, but then they’d have to invite all the dogs and that can be an unruly party. I got to stay with some of my best pals—Winston and Tex when FL was out of town.



This is all of us together at my house and yes, there is no room for the Food Lady when I have friends spend the night.



I've been very busy on the social scene with the Tennis ladies and different dog events like Pet Paloosa. The tennis team isn't winning any games, but they do have a reputation for having the best tailgates in the league.

At Jackalope Jack's

Who says they need a dalmation?

This fall the Food Lady began dating another human.  He lives in Texas and goes by the name of Chuck.  Quite frankly, I call him the Distraction, but I'm growing fond of him.  I make him drive me places and I especially enjoy being the center of his attention.  He's a keeper.

For me the fall means Blessing of the Pets.  I don't think FL was supposed to take this shot, but what can I say, I am her muse. I spent Thanksgiving with the family and Christmas with Mary, Rob, Tex and Winston because the FL went to Key West with her sister (back to that whole...I don't fly thing)

Well, ya'll I wish each of you a great 2012.  And, if at all possible don't let what happened to me in the picture below happen to you.  Bows and pink were never my thing.  Cheers to a bow and pink free year!

Crafty's Corner

So I've started to get a little crafty again.  Summer of 2010 I got rid of all the craft projects I had started, but never finished.  I've been collecting cork for years in hopes of doing somethings with them one day.  The internet can be a wonderful and dangerous place to anyone who is looking for a "simple" project.

Sit back for a sidebar story.....Some of my corks went to an unnamed friend's 30th birthday present.  I made him a cork board out of the corks.  My pinky and ring fingers went numb for 12 hours because I sawed each cork in half so they would lay properly inside the frame.  Two years later, I am enlightened to the fact that my birthday present never made the car ride home and ended up in a friend's garage which was later placed in the trash when this friend with the garage moved.  It is not the worst thing in the world he has done, but let's just say it ranks in his top 5. 

I've never been quite happy about the cork wreaths that I see until I cam across this one on Pinterest (otherwise known as my new obsession). Scroll down to the middle.  She has a lot of other great wreath ideas.

If you think about making this one, I offer the following tips:

• It's going to take a lot of corks. From the picture below, you will see that I ran out.
• Figure out how you want to mount the wreath before starting the endeavor.  I ran wire through the foam and then wrapped it around the wreath.   From there I looped some ribbon to the back of the wire in order to hang the wreath.
• Champagne corks work nicely too.
• I'm not confident that the toothpicks are going to stay in long term and some may require some glue.
• And yes, my hands are sore from jamming toothpicks into cork, but again, I think it was totally worth it.

UPDATE 1-18-12:  Thanks to my friend Nicole, I was given enough corks to finish out the wreath.  I think it came out better than I had expected!