Holden and Phoebe

Check it out - we're on the Durham APS webpage!

http://www.apsofdurham.org/happy_endings/phoebe.html

Only one thing to put on today's naughty list. While hanging out on the deck, I noticed some rotten wood at the base of the french doors, and gave it a little chew. It was nice and crumbly, and I made quick work of gutting the entire rotted area. I then turned my attention to the wood on the deck itself, but it wouldn't budge, so I gave up and napped for a bit. When dad came out to bring me inside, he totally freaked out about the french doors. Something about how he could forget about doing any repairs and would now have to replace them for sure. And then he sprayed this nasty, bitter tasting stuff all over the deck. Geez!

Wahoo, I love these present things! Look at all the great loot we've been getting. This is one of the toys that came in the awesome goody basket Ms. Christa sent to me...

And these are the bandanas that Nic (Ms. Linda's pooch) sent to Holden and me...

Presents ROCK! Thanks everybody! Love, Phoebe

Just in case you were wondering, dad brought home a ribeye steak for me. It was most excellent.

Today marks the 9th anniversary of the day that mom adopted me. As you can see from these pictures, we've both aged quite a bit. Thankfully, mom's taken good care of me and the vet says that I'm doing well for my age. Personally, I don't think I look a day over 6.

Mom just told me that dad is at the grocery store picking up my traditional anniversary present - free range flesh! (Considering mom is a vegetarian, I do appreciate the effort.) I was relieved to hear her say the meat was on its way, because I was a bit worried that she and dad thought PHOEBE was going to count as my gift this year. Now don't get me wrong, she's an OK pup despite being such a spaz, and I do take great joy in watching her get in trouble with the 'rents. But having to share my human affection with another dog is certainly not my idea of a gift. So bring on the meat!!! ~Holden

Welcome to the 1st installment of my naughty list. I suppose some of you have heard from mom and dad that I've been up to no good. They think I haven't been listening, but I've heard the things they've been saying... "little terror," "devil spawned," "gold star my @##!" I think they're exaggerating, but I'll leave it to you, gentle reader, to decide. In this post, I'll document my daily naughty deeds and you can determine if they're really that bad. Love, Phoebe

Naughty List For Thursday, October 26, 2006
(1) Ate through dad's stereo bass cord (took me less than 1 minute - impressive!)
(2) Tore off piece of lattice work from under the deck while playing in the backyard
(3) Knocked over candles while jumping up on the fireplace hearth (duh, what were they doing there anyway?)

Whew, what a weekend! Mom and dad took Phoebe and me on a backpacking trip to the NC mountains with the Venturing Crew that mom volunteers with. It was a great time, although I'm kinda sore today (darned arthritis!) and I must have gotten into some burs or something that left some itchy bumps on my head and neck (drat!). It's a small price to pay, though, for some quality time in the woods!! Phoebe had so much fun she could barely stand it. Here you'll find each of our top 7 (that's dog for top 10) favorite things about the trip as well as a couple of photos of us looking dashing in the backcountry. You can view all of our trip photos here. ~Holden

Holden's Backpacking Top Seven
(1) Helping clean up around the campsite (i.e., licking out the kids' oatmeal bowls)
(2) Drinking out of cool mountain creeks
(3) Getting to hang out in mom and dad's new hammock
(4) Being worshipped by four teens
(5) Getting loose from dad and scooting down a 10-foot bank to swim in a creek
(6) A good nap in the car on the way home
(7) Watching Phoebe get a bath - ha, ha!

Phoebe's Backpacking Top Seven
(1) Getting to share Holden's bed with him on the drive to and from the mountains
(2) Sleeping in the tent with mom, dad, and Holden (have I mentioned how much I love Holden?)
(3) Waking dad up at 4am to give him kisses
(4) Getting a bath when we got home - PSYCH, that sucked!
(5) Eating peanut butter for the first time
(6) Chewing on twigs, rocks, leaves, and all sorts of other stuff
(7) Smelling lots of new smells - the mountains ROCK!

Woo hoo, I've been sprung!!! Today ROCKED! First, my new mom and dad took me in the car, which sucked, but it was worth it because I got to visit with the nice folks at Park Vet. Then, I finally got to see this HOME place everyone has been talking about!

Home is awesome, mostly because Holden is there. He may be old, but he still has puppy crazies. I love him the best, but the humans are pretty nice, too.

Oh, and did I mention there are TOYS? Tons of them. I love the moose that's almost as big as me.

Tomorrow I hear I have to go in the nasty car again, but then we are going to do something called camping, which sounds like it might be cool. Holden and I will let you know how it goes on Monday.

Love, Phoebe

I thought you might be interested in how I'm filling my time waiting for Phoebe to arrive. Today was an icky, wet day - it never stopped raining. That didn't stop me from getting mom to take me for a walk this evening, nor did I reconsider making my usual efforts to extend the walk as long as possible. Everything smells so wonderful in the rain! Once we got back, I quickly escaped mom's towel drying, ran up the stairs, and ignored dad's request to not hop up on the bed with him. Then, I suckered dad into drying me off with a hair dryer while I played with my toys. Ah, it's a tough life.

Thanks for stopping by Phoebe and my little port on the web. Our mom and dad always seem to have a camera in their hands, so we'll share some of our most flattering photos here. We'll also keep you posted on our latest adventures.

Today I tried to visit with my new little sis at the Durham APS, but she's got some kennel cough thing and I'm not supposed to hang out with her for a few more days. So you'll have to stay tuned to hear about her homecoming and whether I decide to be a good big brother or show this little girl who's boss. It'll probably be both. ~ Holden