Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Happy Meals

This was the hope. I would buy this, "Loving Pets Stainless Litter Dish Puppy Bowl " with the thought that it would deter puppies from climbing in the dish during feeding times.
 Because, I'm gonna tell you, it is a MESS.
 Big time.
But reading the description, "Loving Pets Stainless Litter Dish Puppy Bowl is an excellent dish for puppies to share their meals or water in a whelping cage. These stainless steel bowls do not absorb food odors and are dishwasher safe. Perfect for all puppies. Lifetime guarantee." gave me hope.

 Although it doesn't actually claim mess free puppy feeding times, the design lends itself to a vison of puppies quietly lined up, side by side, "sharing" their meal in the shiny new dish.

Yesterday, when the UPS guy delivered the bowl, along with some puppy teething toys and puppy pads for the new kennel (which will go up later today) I was psyched and ready to give it a test run.

I envisioned the puppies gathered in a calm circle 'round the new dish calmly nibbling up their breakfast.
This is what I got:

Really, puppies?
This is my Vietnam, people.

Here is Lucy, showing how very much she cares.

Thank you, Lucy. Thank you very much.

Here is what the battle field looked like when they were finished.

Can you see all the bits of dogfood mush flung here and there and everywhere? I can. Oh yes I can.




And, finally, here are the food encrusted little darlings, telling me that they are not going to put up with staying in a child's wading pool that much longer.
 In fact, I think I can hear them whispering and muttering as they plan their Great Escape.

 I'd better go.
 Have a terrific day.


Monday, November 28, 2011

Puppy Picking Weekend!

It was great to meet most of the puppy people this weekend and introduce them to their newest family members. Although they won't actually be picking up their bullmastiff puppy until the end of December, they got to meet them, name them and fall in love with them.
A success.
Here are a few updates.
King Kong is now named Brutus and will be going to Florida where he will lounge lakeside in the wonderful environment. He may be a show dog as well as a beloved family dog. (No I am not shipping. His family is coming from FL to fly him back with them. Nice!)

T-Bone's new name is Hagrid (from the Harry Potter series!) and he'll be staying fairly close by, in the Canby area. He is going home to a family with four kids, so he is going to have plenty of love and fun.

Sampson's name is now Maximus Decimus Meridius!! They will call him Max (which I am so partial to.) He is going to be trained to be a certified companion dog and will be visiting vet's at the vet's hospital in Southern Oregon. This really blesses our hearts.

Godzilla has been named Lockjaw and I am so happy to see him go to his new family in the Oakland, CA area. His new Dad is a chef and is looking forward to feeding Little Lockjaw until he is ginormous Lockjaw. Shouldn't take too long. These owners have been waiting for a bullmastiff since 1993 so I am beyond excited to see their bullmastiff dreams come true.

Roca is now called Samantha, and her owners have sent her very own special collar for her. (I have had to remove it for now as I keep finding it wrapped around her shoulders). She will be traveling down to the San Jose, CA area where she will join her new brothers, a bullmastiff and a Great Dane, as well as her mama and daddy. Samantha may also have a show career. but we'll have to wait and see.

Here is Hagrid with his new family. Everyone posed perfectly. Unbelievable. We would never be able to recreate this!
Uhhhh, Dave? You left a little something at our house. (No, not just Max!) We'll hold onto it until you come pick up your puppy.




So, we loved meeting each of you, and look forward to meeting a few more of you. I am feeling very much as if I'm now a foster mama; caring for and loving your puppy until he/she  can come and make a home with their real family. Call, skype or email anytime. I'll do my best to be available with puppy pictures and updates.



Saturday, November 26, 2011

And they called it....Puppy Lo-ooove.

We can't let a weekend go by without a little puppy love.
You can make believe you can hear 16 year old Donny Osmond's young voice as you stare into his deep dreamy brown eyes from his album cover and idly wonder  what it would be like to be Mrs. Donny Osmond....
Oh wait.
Back to puppies.
Because, frankly, they are a kajillion times better than being Mrs. Donny Osmond.

They have puppy breath.

This is Rod with Samantha, Jill Z.'s newest family member. I think I can actually hear all the "Awwwwwww's!"

Here is Dave with his puppy, Samson. Please just look at the puppy and ignore the sad, and crooked picture in the background. The 80's called and they want their goose decor back. Humph.



I wanted to add this little snippet because one puppy,who shall remain nameless (except for his name starts with King and ends with Kong) kept growling every time Rod tried to rearrange pups so everyone got some milk. I think I only captured a time or two, but he did it about 10 times in a row.The puppies are really serious about getting their dinner, and KingKong kept thinking one of the other puppies was trying to knock him away.  
.Hope you all had a marvelous Thanksgiving!
PS. We have one male and one female puppy still available! Contact me if you are interested.

Monday, November 21, 2011

Monday morning puppy fun

I don't know why it is so entertaining when puppies start to be able to see and hear and move around a little bit. They are just furry bits of fun right now. Happy Monday, puppy-stalkers!
Edited to add:
 Here are some of the crazy photos we tried to take of wiggling puppies yesterday. I'm not gonna lie; no one was being cooperative.

This is Tiger, who started out life as one of the smallest, and is now catching up to his big brithers! No chest markings. He was the first puppy trying to get around and has been a fighter from the beginning. Very sweet. Hard to imagine these pups will grow up to be 150 lbs+!


These are the girls, Ebony on the left and Roca on the right.
Okay, I had to put Lucy in because she is working so hard and enjoying our snow walks so much rigth now.
Really? Could I be a worse photograher? I think not. This is KingKong who is an adorable puppy...but you'd never know it from this. Dang it. No marks on his chest.
Well, hello there, Godzilla! He looks like he is trying to stop all the papparazzi with his paw sheilding his face. :-) He has small upside down V on his chest.



Goliath is just trying to get back in the puppy pen and EAT...AGAIN. This guy is voracious! Stripe on his chest. Haven't seen that before.

Hey, hey hey! This is T-bone, who is still the largest pup, but all the others are hot on his tail. (get it? His tail??) Oh, I slay myself sometimes!) T-Bone has a T-bone shaped white mark. Cool!

And last but not least is Samson. Big husky boy with a round white spot on his chest. Adorable!

Thursday, November 17, 2011

Consider this a warning

A dire warning, my friends.

A month or so ago, I thought it would be fun and kicky to use this tool to crimp my hair.

It was!

So I did it everyday for a week.

I crimped my hair back and forth....I crimped my hair back and forth.


One day I was crimping away while talking with my friend (and hairdresser) on the phone. (I was getting quite skilled at the crimping.) When I told my friend what I was doing with the crimper (which has the heat of a thousand imploding fiery suns) there was a pause in the conversation. She asked if I was using a heat protectent, or something like that, to protect my hair.

A what?

To do what?



I considered lying.




But this doesn't lie.


On top of my head you will see all the fried, split, broken hair that used to be long, healthy locks. This apparently was caused by carelessly crimping without using some protective product.
Walk away from the crimper, people. Just walk away.


Please don't be alarmed the large purple curlers. My horses, dogs and goats are not. Neither is my mailman. (My husband does his best not to gasp, but one escapes occasionally when I startle him)

This is a picture of a woman who has no vanity.

 Not a scrap of pride. Because she crimped her hair to death.

Stay tuned.
Next week, I'll post  a picture of my muffin top.

Or maybe a picture of my toenails which still have the  peeling remnants of pink nail polish from that pedicure I had back in July.

Back when I cared.

Have a great day.

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Happy 2 week birthday!!

What should we do to celebrate?
How about a video, you say?
For sure.
Here you go, you puppy-stalkers. :-)

You're welcome.

Monday, November 14, 2011

Recipe Monday

Actually, I have no Recipe Monday. I just made that up because I want a Recipe Monday.
Lately, it's been all Puppy Wednesday, and Puppy Friday and,yes, even Puppy Sunday.

I NEED a Recipe Monday.

So this is it.

It gives me a reason to break out the Dutch oven.
.Add a little Napa red wine, and the boys will have Rod's home brewed stout, and I'll call it an evening.

What's up for your Recipe Monday?
We're having:


Beef Carbonnade over Garlic Mascarpone Mashed Potatoes

Yummy comfort food.
Recipe Monday is great. Tomorrow, I'll be ready for Puppy Tuesday.
 Sigh.

Carbonnade: Belgian Beef, Beer and Onion Stew


adapted from Cook's Illustrated



3 1/2 pounds chuck roast, cut into 1-inch pieces

vegetable oil

2 pounds yellow onions (about 3 medium), halved and sliced about 1/4-inch-thick (about 8 cups)

1 tablespoon tomato paste

2 medium cloves garlic, minced (about 2 teaspoons)

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cups low-sodium beef broth

1 1/2 cups beer (12-ounce bottle or can)

4 sprigs fresh thyme leaves, tied with kitchen twine

2 bay leaves

1 tablespoon cider vinegar



Preheat oven to 300 F with a rack in the lower-middle position.



Pat the beef dry with paper towels, then season on all sides with salt and pepper. Heat 2 teaspoons of vegetable oil in large Dutch oven over medium-high heat until very hot. Add about 1/3 of the beef to the pot - don't crowd the meat, you want it to have space to brown properly. Brown for about 3 minutes on the first side, then flip the meat over and cook until the second side is well browned, about another 3 minutes. Transfer the beef to a bowl. Continue browning the rest of the meat in batches, adding 2 teaspoons of oil for each new batch of meat.



Once all the meat has been browned, reduce the heat to medium and add 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil to the pot. Add the onions, 1/2 teaspoon salt and the tomato paste. Cook, stirring occasionally and scraping the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon to loosen the browned bits, until the onions are lightly browned, about 15 minutes. Add the garlic and cook just until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the flour and stir to coat the onions. Cook until the flour is lightly browned, about 2 minutes. Stir in the beef broth, scraping the bottom of the pan again to loosen any remaining browned bits. Add the beer, thyme, bay leaves, vinegar and beef (along with its accumulated juices) to the pot. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Raise the heat and bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally. When the stew reaches a simmer, cover the pot partially, then transfer to the oven. Cook until the beef is fork tender, about 2-3 hours.



Remove the thyme bundle and the bay leaves. Adjust seasonings to taste before serving.





Garlic Mascarpone mashed Potatoes
3 pounds Idaho potatoes, peeled and cut into large dice


Kosher salt

1 1/2 cups whole milk

6 cloves roasted garlic cloves, pureed

1/2 stick unsalted butter

8 ounces mascarpone cheese

Freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Place potatoes in a large saucepan, add cold water just to cover and 1 tablespoon of salt. Bring to a boil over high heat and cook until tender. Drain well and run through a food mill set over a large bowl.



While the potatoes are cooking, combine the milk, garlic puree and butter in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over low heat. Stir the milk mixture into the potatoes until combined. Fold in the mascarpone and season well with salt and pepper. Keep warm over in a bain marie or double boiler until serving.






Sunday, November 13, 2011

Sunday morning and all is well

*** Please keep scrolling down or click on the Bull mastiff link on the right side of this page to view more puppy pics and get info on the parents and this litter.We have one or two puppies left for a family to claim***

So the computer is being repaired, emails are being returned and puppies are getting fat. And loud. We are keeping the room they are in at a temperature of between 79-85. The room they are in now is the living room. It is where I live.
But the temperature is nightmarish. Very hard to sleep with sweat dripping down my face all night.
But did I mention the puppies? They are fat and healthy. And loud.
.
Here are a couple Sunday morning pictures:
Can't you see the beginnings of a perfect bullie head??

:

Friday, November 11, 2011

Oh no....Not the HARD DRIVE!!

Hi Everyone!

This is Jackie -- Diane's FAVORITE sister. And apparently the smartest one. I can't tell you all how many times I've suggested that Diane buy a Macintosh.  Hmmm...Looks like I'm right again!    Gosh it's hard to be THIS right.

OK...On with Diane's message:  "My computer hard drive has crashed and is unrecoverable.  Please call if you have any questions or want to talk about the puppies.  I'll add a new post when the computer is back up but it's going to be a few days. Sorry for any inconvenience!!"

Thanks All!  


Thursday, November 10, 2011

Saying Good-bye.

***If you are looking for information on Lucy's and Luca's puppies, just keep scrolling down***

I know.
They're just puppies.
It's not like they're people.
But when you're pouring yourself into helping, forcing, willing a fragile puppy to live, it just physically hurts us when they don't pull through.
Some of them were born very tiny and just never really grew.
So we would hold them against our skin to keep them warm, try to comfort them while they struggled to breathe at 3 a.m.  Feed them with tiny kitten bottles, which led to tiny stomach tubes so we could get nourishment into them.
 Somehow.
But nothing worked.
And we lost one after another until four had died.

The last pup was lost the other night after a valiant effort. He honestly didn't look like he should have lived as long as he did.

But he was a fighter. Which made it all the more difficult to stop the heroic measures, wrap him up in a towel, and place him in the side of Lucy's puppy pool until he stopped breathing.

That's when Lucy came over to see.

I am not attempting to attribute human emotions to an animal that does not have the capacity for it, but I think the pictures below explain the story.

I took pictures because I was stunned to see her grief. I know dogs mourn for various reasons, but had never witnessed something as moving as this.

To me, this is heart-wrenching, amazing and beautiful as she says good-bye to her puppy.
I hope you understand why I put these pictures up.
Lucy is a wonderful Mama, and this is truly touching.

 God has blessed us with our dogs, our companions, our best friends.
 Manytimes, in more, and deeper ways, than we are aware of.

Good-bye precious puppies.

I love you, Lucy the Lion.










Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Week one pup pics

I'm not going to use my words tonight.
You're welcome.
(Please click on the Bullmastiff puppy link on the right hand side of the blog to read more about Lucy, Luca and the pups. I'll have more info and pics in a day or two.
When I've slept.

Sunday, November 6, 2011

Random Sunday puppy pics

Here are some puppy pics for those of you waiting to see. Also, if you want more info on the puppies, please click on the Bullmastiff Puppy link on the right side of this page.


Friday, November 4, 2011

They're Here!

But Lucy is not here.
POOR GIRL.
She deserves all caps in that sentiment.
Lucy the Lion is undergoing a c-section as we speak. Her last puppy (# 13) was not able to be delivered naturally, and Lucy was exhausted from all the laboring.
Seriously,
12 pups.
8 males.
4 females.
36 hours of labor.
I just want to hug her like she hugs her puppies.
When she wasn't feeling well enough to nurse last night (you know, because of all the contractions) she would lay on her stomach with her paws in front of her and gather puppies to her. Then she would rest her tired bullmastiff head on them.
Precious.
But now to pictures. Because
1) you really all want to see all the fresh, newborn cuteness, and
2) I am too tired to write and there is no telling what things I will say when I am under the influence of sleep deprivation. Because I have not slept yet, either.
Here you go:



for those of you who are buying puppies, please email me at DidiLyn@aol.com and we can figure out the the wheres/whens/hows. We already know the whys. ;-)
Now it is time to feed some crying puppies, then a nap, then off to pick up the Mama-dog.

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Steady as she goes

*** Keep scrolling down for more information on Luca and Lucy's puppies***

Today I set up Lucy's water bed in our room. Just so you know, it is not an actual water bed, but a kid's plastic wading pool borrowed from some friends. No, Lucy's puppies are not going to experience the zen-like qualities of a full service water birth and day spa.
 But I will play some calming music and use my inside voice.
Here is her bed. It is more comfortable than it looks. I know this for a fact. I checked it out.
After I set it up and made sure I have plenty or towels and other things needed for this blessed occasion at the ready, I made Lucy get it in to try it on for size. I had to bribe her with a biscuit, but she climbed on over the wall and settled in.
Then her breathing became panting, and her panting was interspersed with soft whines. As she lay there, I noticed she was trembling from nose to tail. And panting. Hard.
I had seen this before and was pretty sure I was seeing  the first stage of labor. Which, according to my records and math skills, should not be until next Wednesday.
 At the earliest.
I made a call to her vet, looked for my purse, looked for my keys (WHERE IS MY PURSE!! I CAN'T FIND MY KEYS!!) then heaved and hefted my ginormously pregnant and heavily panting Lucy into the Trailblazer.
Long story short, she may be heading into premature labor. This is not good, as puppies cannot survive this early. I need to keep an eye on her and keep her calm and quiet. I have a feeling I'm going to find out where my sleep deprivation wall is.

The good signs are that she is still hungry and thirsty, her temperature has not dropped, the puppies are still alive and growing.
She is having some bites of rib eye steak as we speak and resting comfortably. I think she was too tired to get on the couch, so I took her picture while she was on the floor. How odd for her. ;-)
Anyway, we'll have our hands full for the next week as we try to keep her calm, rested and quiet. So far, so good.
She really needs to  hold out until Wednesday November 9th.

Wonder Bread

If you are around the same age as I am, you probably remember Wonder Bread. It came in a white package with bright red,yellow and blue balloons on it and claimed to "help you grow in 7 ways!"
Like that was a good thing?
Times.
They are a'changin'.

We would have cinnamon sugar toast for breakfast.
Peanut butter and grape jelly sandwiches and Kool-Aid for lunch.
Then there was always a plate with soft white Wonder Bread on the table next to the pot roast and  overcooked  carrots and potatoes. We would butter it up with margarine and snarf it down.

 I still have fond memories of Wonder Bread. (But I also have fond memories of my Dad's cigarette smoke. Go figure)

Now-a-days (gosh, I sound like Grampa Smucker) we eat healthier, especially where bread is concerned. Besides the occasional loaf of homemade French bread with REAL butter, we mostly eat whole grain breads, and usually only once per day. Carbs'll kill ya, I tell ya. Too many of them, anyway.
Remembering the Wonder Bread last night made me think of how Jesus referred to himself as the bread of life. (Yep, I'm going there. I'm totally comparing Jesus to Wonder Bread.)

"Jesus replied, "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry again." John 6:35

It made me wonder why he would call himself that, and I'm sure there are any number of reasons.
 But it made me think of how we chowed down on that Wonder Bread three times each day.
Maybe that's one reason Jesus called himself the bread of life; he is calling us to feed on, or fill up on him everyday. Not just once a day, but maybe three or more times each day.

If I don't spend time actively pursuing him everyday,by reading, praying and listening to messages online, my spiritual perspective diminishes. My thoughts turn to other things. I need to keep him at the forefront everyday, all day, or I am astonished at how quickly my attitudes change. I become more impatient with people I love.I get more snappy and snarky. My attitude of gratitude erodes into an attitude of entitlement. And that attitude doesn't look good on me. Or you, either.

So, this Jesus equals Wonder Bread is a pretty darn simple thought. I know, I know. It's as fluffy as a loaf of Wonder Bread fresh from the bag.
But simple can be good.
After all, he DID call himself the bread of life, and we do need to fill up on him throughout the day. And I bet you my bag of cat eyes and puries (marbles, for you babies)that he helps me grow in more than seven ways.
BAM! Take that, Wonder Bread!