Jane Addams Trail

Here we are in cooler times walking on the Jane Addams Trail near our town. Jane Addams was pretty famous, I guess, and was born in a small town north of here. We actually know the people who just bought this awesome acreage. Jane Addams started the Hull House in Chicago. It's been blazing hot here just like in most of the country so this picture makes me long for nice, cool walks in the country.

Videos and YouTube.com

We were just reading Axel's blog and so decided to jump onto the YouTube bandwagon. We have some short videos of me when I was a wee pup but they are pretty dark. I'm just crazy about watching them, though. This video is one of Paige with Jason and Nic's cat, Sunny. Everybody loves Paige's toe-toes - including Sunny. I'm so sad that I never got to meet Sunny but he went over the Rainbow Bridge.

Thanks for sharing the links to the other Wire videos, Axel buddy. I was so curious about how theose other wires got into our computer!

Another Weekend Trip

I went to Dubuque again - I think this is my third trip. Despite no food all morning, I still got sick when we stopped in Galena. I got to see Barb's old golden, Samantha, again but she didn't like me any better than she did last time. And, I liked her ALOT, if you know what I mean. She turns up her lip and gives me a low growl and just ignores me. Can you believe that? This is the rainbow we saw when we started our trip back home.
You know how I have this kleenex fetish and continuously drag and shred the kleenex out of our bathroom wastebaskets? Well, being my usual nosy self I ran right up to Barb's second floor and found their wastebaskets to plunder. Mom was embarrassed by my audacity. Mom also left me out of the crate for 20 minutes last Friday and I proceeded to pull the garbage bag through the small opening that that darn kid's lock allows and shredded the bag to pieces.

Speaking of cute, I got lots of compliments in the past few days when I was out walking with Mom. One lady said over-and-over how "beautiful" I was and another told me I had a "pretty face". Man, I'm a handsome boy dog - can't they see that? Anyway, remember to vote for me on the Barkslope dog-of-the-month contest. OK? A big thanks to all of you pups who already voted. If I could see you I'd wag my tail and give you some good licks. (Doesn't that poor little Eugene dog look sad in his clothes?)

What are you Afraid Of?

I'm not afraid of anything at all. We had big thunder storms and lightening here last night. Mom said there is 4 inches of rain in the guage and that lake is in the back yard again. Wow, I thought it was cool. I'm not scared of fireworks either. I try to figure out what they are and where they are coming from but I don't run away and hide. Are you Wires afraid of thunderstorms or fireworks? from Curious, Bogie

Itty Bitty Barker

Mom was thrilled to get home yesterday and find our Itty Bitty Barker had been delivered. Melissa Schultz is the artist and she loves animals! You can find lots of other dog sculptures, too, so check them out. We wanted it, of course, because Barker is my last name. Looks like she doesn't have any Wires available right now but I bet she will soon.

My buddy, Axel, thinks I should post a direct link to the dog-of-the-month voting on Barkslope. Here's the link for July. Thanks for your vote, too Mackie. Mom and I think your black-and-white photo is very artsy.

Vote for Me

My Mom entered me in the Barkslope, Dog of the Month, photo contest. It would be really woofin' if you would vote for me on their website. I know, I know, there are some other great looking pups out there including one named Diva. Is she the same one that has written to me on my blog? What a hottie!

I don't really know why Mom cares if I win a photo contest. They love me the same if I'm all muddy from being under the deck and digging or if I've just come home from the groomer.

Happy Birthday to Me

Yep - I'm one year old now as of July 15th. I'm so honored that Axel wished me a Happy Birthday - thanks buddy. I'm sure he saw it on the Yahoo group calendar. I added some photos from my party - well, it was really Dawn's cake but the other photo shows the presents that I got from Mom, Dad and the Andersons. It was super cool to spend it in Iowa City with the kids. I was really good with them so nobody had to spank me on my birthday.

On the way to Iowa City I barfed all over the inside of Dad's truck. So, on the way home I rode with Mom, of course. She didn't give me anything to eat all morning and I tried my best not to get sick. I closed my eyes half-way, my ears were back, I drooled buckets, I shook like a leaf but I managed to keep down my cookies.

Old Man River

The Mississippi river sure is bigger and dirtier than our little lake. We stopped on two different sand bars. At the first one I got to dig as much as I wanted (which is alot). At the second one I found a huge clam and met this delightful dog named Dixie. She's a mixture of King Charles Spaniel and German Shepherd. Isn't she a beauty? I did my crouching thing when she came over to our piece of the beach and then, too soon, she was gone. I now believe in love-at-first-sight. Here I am already missing my Dixie dog friend.

Mom and Dad were astonished when we spotted a bald eagle flying real close alongside our boat and were able to follow it landing in a tree. We saw herons and cormorants and some curiously large fish jumping in the water. We watched a barge go by and yearned after many large houseboats. Oh, well, we were happy to come home and sleep in our own bed.

Upcoming Birthday

I think my special day is almost here. I will turn one on July 15th so we should celebrate next weekend when we celebrate Dawn's 36th birthday. Mom went shopping in Rockford yesterday and brought home a sack that smells like some new treats. Maybe there are new toys, too. I haven't had a new toy for an awfully long time. I'd love to have a party and invite Roxie from down the street. We want to go play at the dog park together and wear party hats, although Mom and Dad are anti-clothes-for-dogs. We are looking forward to seeing the clothes that Butchy and Snickers' Mom is going to create - she's a designer and talented gardener!

Another New Trick

Hey, guess what. Not only can I change the channel on the TV but I also know how to lower the volume. No, I don't use the remote - really. I just get so excited when I see those dog tricks that I jump up there and start pushing buttons.

Mom had a few friends over for lunch yesterday and she was so impressed at what a good boy I was. I didn't bark when they came and hardly jumped on them at all when I got to come in and meet them. That was after Dad took me for a walk and I was powerful thirsty. Two of Mom's friends had used our ladies room and the other was about to enter when I beat her to it. They came in and saw me half-way into the stool getting a huge drink. She decided she'd use the bathroom at work after seeing that! I just don't like my bowl water any more now that I've discovered the icy cold stool water.

Here's a photo Mom took of me guarding the front yard. We had a good day at home today since Mom's off on Fridays in the summer and I hear we're going boating at the Mississippi tomorrow and I get to go.

Fireworks

Hey Wires out there,
Do you like the sound of fireworks or do they drive you nuts? Do you bark, are you scared or do you wonder what in the heck is going on all of a sudden? I just growl at them.

I have a new trick! Last night when we were watching Ultimate Dog Championships on Animal Planet, I got so excited to see a Jack Russell competing in the Fly Ball contest. I jumped up to the TV to get a closer look and I changed the channel. Mom and Dad just laughed and laughed - they thought I was very clever. The fastest dogs were the border collies, of course, but there was a speedy little rat terrier, too.

This morning on our walk we met a new dog. Sally looked so much like one of those fast border collies that I did my submission routine and started crouching low long before we got to her. She was a friendly pup and we hope to meet her again soon.

Here are a couple of the flower pictures from Mom's garden. Dad and I do most of the watering because I'm crazy about the hose. I bite at the water and bark and chase the hose all over the place. I'm a nut!