Winter came back

After almost two weeks of summer-like temperatures, winter came back to Southern California.  The sky was dreary, looking like it wanted to rain all day, but not actually giving in and raining until late afternoon.

We spent the day inside where it was cozy and warm but where the light wasn't great for taking photographs.  Even still, I like these shots of the girls: 

 

 

 

Please?

A cardi droving!

Is you haven't already, head on over to the Daily Corgi here to see a cardigan doing what they were designed to do: drove. 

As the caption there says, this cardi "takes no guff."  I don't think I would want to face down that big ol' cow like she/he does. 



P.S.  I love the movie "Australia."  It didn't do well in the theaters, I guess, but we liked it.  When I first saw the movie, Pumpkin hadn't even been born yet and we were considering getting a boy Cardi as a friend for Darby.   After watching the movie I decided, if we did get a boy, to name him "Drover" after the character played by Hugh Jackman and his rippling arm muscles.. But, then the Pumpkin-girl came along and "Drover" is no name for a sweet little cardi girl, even if she was designed to drove!

Pumpkin's Tongue

Pumpkin often leaves the tip of her tongue sticking out.  I've never seen Darby's tongue sticking out--other than when she is panting, of course. 

It's terrible I know, but I'm always tempted to grab that little pink tongue--gently, of course!--and I often do.  And, the really strange thing is that Pumpkin lets me do it!

Maybe it won't be so bad

So, for several reasons (one of which I'm lucky enough to say was not financial) I let our cleaning woman go.  Although I truly do enjoy cleaning house, I don't like having to do it on top of a 40 hour-a-week job, and at this point in my life I am fortunate enough to be able to pay someone else to do it.  I really wasn't looking forward to doing the cleaning until (if) I find someone else to hire.  But, maybe it isn't going to be so bad.  I've got Pumpkin to help me.

I wonder if she'll do windows?

Chase!

I can just hear Pumpkin saying, "Bet you can't catch me!"

I took these photos a few days ago.  As far as I remember Darby never did catch Pumpkin, but they both kept racing around the backyard for quite some time!  I wish I captured on camera when Darby jumped over the white chaise lounge!

The Very Large Array

Glenn and I watched a re-run of the movie "Contact" not too long ago.  I remember thinking as I watched the movie that I should do a Google search on The Very Large Array to try to understand a little more about radio astronomy.

But once the movie was over, I forgot about it until I saw this very large array: 

I wish I knew just what they can pick up on those dish antennae of theirs!

Early

Glenn isn't one to sleep especially late--usually no later than 7:00 am or so, and often he is up and about earlier than that.

But NOT 4:15 am-earlier.  Which is when the cute little creature on the right in this picture wanted to get up on Sunday and Monday morning:

 

When Erika was an infant, she got in a routine of waking up at 4:30 am.  I was a stay-home mom and a morning person, too, so the time didn't bother me.  Darby went through a phase when she woke up at 4:30-5:00, too.   With both Erika and Darby it didn't seem to matter what time they went to sleep, or ate, or peed or pooped--they just liked to wake up at 4:30 am. 

Well, Pumpkin seems to be cut from the same mold as Erika and Darby--but she is upping the ante and waking up at as early as 4:00 -- 4:15 am!  And, when she went to sleep, or last ate, or peed or pooped doesn't seem to be a factor with her, either.

On Saturday, my sister and I planned to leave for Phoenix at 5:00 am.  So, when Pumpkin and my alarm clock went off at the same time (4:00 am!) it was fine with me.  I fed the two girls and just before my sister and I left, I put them back in their crates with Glenn snoring away in the same room.  They went back to sleep for a couple of hours, he said.  

But, I guess he wasn't so lucky on Sunday and Monday morning. After letting them out for their morning "constitutional," he put them back in their crates and lay there listening to Pumpkin whine until he couldn't stand it any more.  Unfortunately, it didn't occur to him to feed them, then put them back in their crates!  So, he had an early start to his last two days.  Very early! 

Flat George and I are back from Arizona

Flat George, my sister and I had a great visit with my niece and her family and when we got back, Darby, Pumpkin and Glenn were all just fine!  Thanks for any well wishes you sent their way!

I don't have any Corgiage yet, but I do have these photos of Flat George in Yuma, Arizona when my sister and I stopped for breakfast on Saturday morning:  (See him way down there at the base of the bush?)

 

I guess it is a tradition to sit in the wooden rocking chairs on the front porch of Cracker Barrel restaurants if they are busy and you have to wait for a table to clear.   We wanted FG to have the whole experience, so we let him sit in one of the chairs for a bit. 

He really wanted to check out the cactus--he said they don't grow in the UK where he lives.  He was careful not to back up too close to this one: 

It's good that Flat George is so well-behaved and it's good that we visited Phoenix in the winter time, because once we got to my niece's house we were so excited to see the birthday boy and his little sister (and their parents, too, of course) that I forgot all about Flat George until this morning when we started home.  Thank goodness the car hadn't heated up too much and thank goodness he is really well house-broken!  I feel bad that he missed out on the birthday party--it isn't every day that someone visiting from the UK can help an American boy celebrate his 8th birthday. 

On the way home, I wanted to take his picture with one of the Homeland Security or Border Patrol officers at one of the checkpoints we crossed, but then I remembered we didn't have his passport and they might have asked for it.  (Really, the line of cars was just too long!)

We had a great time and Flat George got to see another part of the US.

And, it is nice to be home! 

Corgiage tomorrow!

Help

Glenn needs your help. 

He is home alone with Darby and Pumpkin this weekend.

My sister and I are driving over to Phoenix to help our little nephew celebrate his 8th birthday and Glenn couldn't come along, so he will be babysitting.

Think good thoughts for him, OK? 

On second thought, maybe you should be thinking good thoughts for this Lil' Shitski 

that she behaves well enough for Glenn that she makes it to Monday!


P.S.  Guess who gets to come along to Arizona with my sister and me?

Flat George!  I hear he travels really well in the car and won't even need any potty stops!

Green!

Check this out, and see if you recognize anyone! 


P.S.  This is her second appearance.  Last year her tongue made the cut!

Freaky feet Friday

Pumpkin trouble -- AGAIN

There's that goody-two shoes, Darby!

Look at her--running so fast just because The One Who Feeds Us called her.

Harrumph! The One Who Feeds Us isn't going to give her anything to eat, but still she comes running!  Miss Never-does-anything-wrong!

 

Maybe if I get in her way and stop her...

...she'll be the one who gets in trouble for a change! 

Attack!

There's just no two ways about it

There's just no two ways about it, corgis are strange.

From the top:

And from the bottom: 

Every now and then, I stop and notice, really notice how odd these wonderful creatures of mine are.  The giant ears, the long bodies, the short legs, the waist, the "flying squirrel sprawl."  While breeders have tweaked corgis throughout their very, very long history and continue to do so today, they are not designer dogs.  Most of what you see today was there hundreds, maybe even thousands of years ago when these little dogs were so important to the survival of Welsh farmers and herders. 

There's just no two ways about it--corgis are strange but wonderful creatures!

Faded denim

I think the girls look good in on faded denim.

The other end of this morning

This morning

No corgiage, but pretty, I think.

I like their paint jobs

Caught again

 

Uh, oh.  Looks like I've been caught being bad AGAIN.