Some Pictures from a Windy Day at the Park

(THAT is what my hair looks like from behind today?!)

Gizmo

This is Gizmo aka Blizmo, Magizmo, Blizzard, Gizzard, Demon Dog.

Two years ago, hubs randomly announced that we should go visit the pound.  We walked around looking in every cage and I stopped to put my hand through every single one petting those sad dogs with faces so sweet they each brought me to tears.  While I was kneeling down petting a particularly sad sheep dog, hubs standing next to me yelled out, "Babe, a corgi!!"

I looked over and standing there staring at my hubs was this fuzzy little guy.

We went home and picked up Tuffy so they could meet.  Tuffy walked around the pound playground peeing all over everything, completely uninterested in this furry little ball of dog who kept relentlessly jumping on him.  But Tuffy didn't try to rip off his head, so we called it a pass.  

Hubs had one of only 3 moments of doubt I've ever watched him have when we went home that day.  He couldn't bring himself to decide to adopt another dog.  I basically pressured him until he said yes.  

A couple weeks later, after he recovered from a doggy cold, he was ours.

The first year was ROUGH. 

Tuffy did not enjoy his new brother and he showed it.  What hubs and mo-in-law insisted was normal behavior between dogs, I saw as the evil coming out of my sweet pug.  Every time they fought, I broke down in tears.  It was horrible.

He also ate a lot of stuff.

Including our windowsill.

But it got better.  And he's now the sweetest little fur ball you ever will meet.  

His happiest place in the world is stretched out on a human's chest licking their face frantically which he does every morning to wake me up.

He prefers to be touching his brother at all times, if Tuffy will allow it.

He's still terrified of putting on a collar, harness, or leash.

He still won't walk by the Swiffer without looking like he's going to poo his pants.

He still barfs on long car rides.

He still eats the windowsill if we don't spray the non-chew spray on it.

But we love him.

Every once in a while, hubs will lay down next to Gizmo, look at me, and say, "He was at the pound babe."  He just can't believe that his sweet little dog was ever sleeping on a concrete ground and not snuggled in a dog bed on top of our bed (yes, Gizmo enjoys a good double bed).

If you ever come over to our house, he will jump on you, and bark at you, but then he'll calm down and once you bend down to pet him, he will look you in the eyes with such intense love and concentration that you will immediately fall in love with him.  

Happens every time.

Tuffy

This is Tuffy aka Buffer, Tuffapatomas, or TuffPants.

We adopted him in 2008 after we had been dating about a year and lived in Chico

He looked like this

That picture actually makes my heart break a little, he was so poorly taken care of.  We found him at pug breeder who was selling him because she claimed she wasn't going to breed any more and he was one of her stud dogs (she kept breeding, she sucked).

He had never had a leash on, never played with a toy (he pooped all over the first toy we bought him) and was so used to living outside in the dirt, that he refused to walk on grass for a long time after we got him.

Now,  over 4 years later, he spends all day sleeping on couches

Or on beds

Or begging for food

Or doing what we call chinfers (resting his chin adorably on anything)

He is the sweetest little dog that ever was a dog.

He insists on always touching someone.

Lap sitting is his favorite hobby.

He loves food almost as much as laps.

He likes to wake up at 2:00am and pace around the bed until someone lifts up their covers for him to snuggle under.

His favorite snuggle positions are spooning or knee's butts (the crook of your knee).

He doesn't bark, he boofs.

He will heavy sigh at you if you move too much while doing lap sitting.

He tried to murder his brother for about a month after we adopted him and even ripped out a chunk of hair, but now they're best friends.

His feet smell like tortilla chips.

He once got kicked off a bus in San Francisco.

He is my first real fur baby.

I am his momma and I will love him always and always.

Full Circle

My mom loves to tell a story about me as a little girl sitting on the chair in front of our tv eating butter.

It's pretty gross that I ate butter at all (and no wonder I was a chubster), but the story gets worse.

I was sharing my butter.

With our dog.

One swipe of the finger in the butter tub into my mouth.

One swipe for the dog.

Repeat.

It's pretty representative of me as a little kid.

I was sitting here tonight listening to my live class lecture enjoying some leftover Baskin Robbins daiquiri ice (130 calories per 4oz versus the 300 calories for the damn cheesecake flavor I wanted.  I hate this whole display the calories thing.  Can't we just be fat and ignorant?!) and I was reminded of that story.

Because after every couple of tasty bites, I let my dogs have some too.

And then I thought hmm....that'ssss pretty gross.

I guess the butter story was pretty representative of me as an adult too.

Also, being a dog in my house seems to be a pretty tasty gig.

Side Note:  Before I let the dogs have any of my ice cream, I asked the hubs if it had actual daiquiri in it because then they couldn't have any.  He looked at me, shook his head, and said, "How would they be able to serve it to kids if it had alcohol in it?"  Oh right...

Demon Dog

I've had some love/hate relationships before, but this one is currently taking the cake.  I love our dogs.  They're our furry children.  I would jump in front of a car for them, I would kill for them, I've stayed up nights for them.  Some days though, I want to kick them.  Christmas has been rough on me this year for many reasons, but Gizmo, my dear youngest furry child, decided to make it a little bit harder today.  I came home from work at lunch to a living room floor covered in ripped up wrapping paper and destroyed presents.  Awesome.  Instead of kicking Gizmo, (I currently have him locked outside so I don't), or complaining about him anymore, here are some pictures of my lovely demon dog.  Love him or hate him, he's pretty damn cute.