christmas eve eve!

our goldens have been so good to put up with all of the christmas festivities.....

doorbells ringing, horns beeping, christmas trees, christmas lights, christmas cookies,  friends calling,

schedules a little bit mixed up with the family's comings and goings, late nights, shopping bags,

wrapping presents, jingle bells, christmas music, decorations.

"hurry up!, let's go!, wait!, come!, jump!, sit!, go eat!, good dog!, leave it!,

let's go home!, go play!, no!, here!

go swim!, get the ball! who's that? go lie down! shhhhhhh!  quiet! good night!

good dog!

who loves the puppies!

we love the puppies!"

snow shore!

what a day.....walking daisy and fitzgerald.......a beautiful beach day.......sun and snow.........seashells, ice, snow.......sparkling water.......seagulls..........dogs tugging on horseshoe crabs..............some other dogs.....beach friends....frozen tide.....windswept snow.......quiet......dogfootprints.......daydreams......magical.......racing.......jumping.......barking.........
swimming.....sniffing......smelling.....following......buckets.....seaglass.......driftwood..... snow.....daydreams......smiles.......sunshine.........glorious .......wind and reeds blowing.......snow and ice.......frozen seashells.......frozen pebbles.....frozen  seagrass....... flying gulls.......footprints in the sand........sandpipers........salty, wet dogs....seagull footprints......panting......snowy snoots...... shaking....frollicking.......rolling in snow.....licking snow......loving life.............chasing....... chest deep in snow.........splashing......laughing.....herding....warming my heart........it's christmas at the snow shore!

merry christmas!  merry christmas!  merry christmas!  merry christmas!  merry christmas!

just like our dogs

oh how we love christmas!  i love decorating the tree and taking out all of the special ornaments that we have recieved as gifts over the years........even daisy got an ornament of her own a few years ago.....it's one of my favorites......a golden.....the pic above isn't that great, but you get the idea....our favorite dogsitter gave it to daisy!  not to us...to daisy.  do i really need to explsin why she was the greatest dogsitter ever!  she loves our dogs and our kids and us!  we would drop daisy off.....and she would dash out of the car and bark at the front door......while she was at  her "spa", as we called it, she would watch animal planet, playing on the t.v. at all times........she could swim in the pool, at her convenience, play with the bearnese mountain dog and a couple of others......and she was allowed to sleep in bed!  a dog's life!  that's why i'm coming back next time as a golden retriever!  love is everywhere!

daisy, left and fitzy, left........they had quite the busy day.....running in snowy trails up to their chests......loving it......still wet, need to be brushed.....they love sleeping near the fireplace to dry off.

today, they saw 6 deer in the woods......very exciting for all....fitzy was dreaming tonight and
all sing songy...like barking in her sleep.  daisy, as always, trotting in her sleep!   that's just what i need right now........sleeeeeeeeeeeep!    hope everyone is thaking some time out during this christmas season to enjoy some of the quiet, peaceful moments.....just like our dogs.

waiting for snow in connecticut

even the dogs know its christmas time.....silly hats....... trees inside the house.......christmas music......christmas movies.......fires in the fireplace........the smell of gingerbread......lots of christmas card photos with families and their dogs......our stockings are hung by the children with care........there's even a forecast for snow..........they love chasing snowballs....... joy to the world!

the dogs still get to the beach even on the coldest days....they swim....daisy has her snack....horseshoe crab shells.....they frollick and play rough.......today was a quiet day at the beach....raw and cold.  my husband came to meet us.......after he was caught in the frenzy of a saturday snowstorm on the horizon and shoppers in the grocery store, panicked and shoppers in a big chain store even more frenzied...harried!  the beach is where we come for peaceful times.......and the dogs get to run freely like nowhere else!

fitzy found a bucket with the scent of some dead fish....she was determined to get into it.....as usual, ready to eat anything.   earlier today, she got into a shopping bag and ate an incredible amount of peanut m & ms.......shocolate is bad for dogs, they say........never know it looking at the little piggy pup!

they were so wet and muddy....as can be seen in the photo above.....they defrosted in the car......happy, happy dogs.   lots of sand came into the house today!

we wrapped christmas presents and had a fire in the fireplace.....daisy and fitzy were both sleeping by the fire, warming up.

daisy, daisy, give me your heart so true.....

we had a wonderful time at the beach today....daisy and fitzy ran really hard. the weather was beautiful....no one on the beach...we had it all to ourselves...just us and the seagulls at low tide. lovely! these dogs make me laugh...fitzy is getting better at waiting a bit and not running too far ahead....daisy sticks by me for short bits of time....then, they frolic together. they see the seagulls and they're off. a little wind today, but very pleasant for december.

we got home and daisy and fitz stayed outside to dry for a bit....with the sun peeking from behind clouds.....lazy dogs lounging on the deck....and, at last happy to come inside and sit with the kids and kittens.

later, the dogs were out again for awhile. when i brought them in, i noticed daisy favoring her right leg....oh no! sweet daisy....i was worried about her and decided to lie down with her on the rug....she was tired and mellow.

i called the vet...just to check and see what they recommended. just keep her laying low....wait and see....she wasn;t crying...she was chipper for dinner.....

little by little tonight it seems better...not all the way....i'm hoping it was just a muscle...my husband thought there might be some swelling.....she is sleeping and earlier she seemed to want to go upstairs with me.....i stayed down...so she wouldn't force it....she's so loyal.

my mom used to sing her the old fashioned song "daisy, daisy, give me your heart so true, i'm just crazy over a dog like you".......don't think we're crazy....she sang it on the phone long distance! i still sing it and think of the joy daisy gave my mom. everyone is just crazy for daisy!

let's go!

what a beautiful day it is today...so mild...seems to be in the mid 40s....another day with some time to run these dogs at the beach. they had a great walk early this morning with my husband....in the woods. that's a great walk, but awhile back, we realized that fitzy couldn't handle the walk off leash! she once ran off in the woods and we had to pick her up by car...i got a phone call, from the vet, who was called by the dolan's, who read fitzy's tag while she was helping herself to a big can of garbage......th dolan's were so nice...they said they called our vet because they didn't want us to get a ticket from the dog warden! how nice could they be...we went to pick up fitzy, only to find fitzy, cozy in the house, with the dolan's....getting treats while she waited for limo to arrive.

anyway, since the first event with the dolan's, there have been many more....it seems that fitzy gets out in the woods, gets that look in her eyes and......rin tin tin!.....she's off to the dolan's! they love seeing her and welcome her with open arms...the only problem is that fitzy has lost all sense of loyalty once she realizes she's got an opportunity that should not be overlooked.

so, it's off to the beach in the early afternoon! sun shining and so mild that i had to take off a layer. the dogs were delighted to be there.....when we pulled up to our beach, we saw a car that was familiar....the dogs recognized the older woman before i did! her name, faith....she doesn't know my name....but, she does know daisy and fitzy...we have talked many times....she is 85 and loves to take a ride to madison a few times a week...i love her style...she wears "love that pink" lipstick, by revlon....i noticed right away because my mother always wore that color...she is always all dolled up with lotsa pink blush and lips and always sports a hat!....she always has a little story about years ago when she visited madison in the summers of her youth....she will be here on new years eve to enjoy lobster rolls, a "cocktail" with her friend and be home before dark...to settle in for a quiet new years eve.....we meet the nicest people with our friendly dogs!

the dogs ran and ran today...taking time to sniff in the reeds, splash in the water and grab a few clam shells to chomp on....life is good.

we also came upon a woman with her 2 white dogs (spimonis?)....with names from an opera...they all see each other like old friends...our timing, lately, has mad for quite the doggy foursome! a few treats for all and a polite hello between owners and we are off, down the beach, to our own desstinations.....always so pleasant...and always so happy to see another friendly dog walker. it does make a difference....when the people are relaxed and friendly, so are the dogs...when we come upon someone, out with their dog, and they tense up, the dogs all get crazy...they yell...the dogs bark...talk about smelling fear! it is always a pleasure to see friendly dog people!

what a beautiful day we had...treasuring the moments in the sun....maybe the calm before the storm! back to the car we go...."let's go!" i say to the dogs...."jump!"...they're in the car and off we go.....back to real life!

twenty six degrees of separation!

bundled up today....sunny, windy, clear and beautiful. daisy and fitzy had a long wait today while i was busy at home cleaning, organizing and wrapping christmas presents.

i was out with them early....looking lovely....in yoga pants, a t-shirt, my husbands hooded sweat shirt, ugg boots that fitzy ate as a pup and a big, cozy white blanket! it was quite a look. ever since we got daisy, my "look" is a long way from my days at saks fifth avenue in new york city....and that's a joy....madison is where our family found home....we live a good life....especially, if you're one of our dogs.

if we come back to live another life, i want to come back as a golden retriever.....they live with great families, they love kids.....they always travel in nice cars or trucks with windows wide open....many of their owners seem to love the beach, some even have been blessed with beach houses and boats....they travel on boats, canoes, kayaks.....they make trips to the ice cream stores and get puppy cups.....when they're out and about, they seem to find love everywhere they go! and lots and lots of petting by one and all....they love being groomed. in general, they seem to love the luxe in life! of course, they love their owners and wag and smile....and boy, do they love to eat.....

today, daisy found some hefty horseshoe crab shells to feast on....fitz was curious and in time, she found her own horseshoe crab shell.....they sat munching for minutes and minutes! daisy usually likes to trot along with a skate case.....happy as can be....tossing and catching and....teasing fitz with it!

today, they ran wildly. their hair blowing in the wind....really blowing....actually parting the hair on their backs. they swam....though not as long as other days. they tusseled and tromped and trotted and roughed it up for almost two hours. i had an especially good time watching them play wildly together. they have their herding and bitng and bearing teeth....they walk along side by side, as if they have come to a time out for a breather.....they poke and dig side by side until fitzy runs frantically to the water to catch the sandpipers or seagulls....she becomes mesmorized and puzzled...seemingly, disappointed to have potential friends leave her in their dusty sand. daisy stays low preparing to pounce on her fitzy....she seems to feel a responsibility to this pup who came into her life like a lightening bolt....or, marley....

more to follow