Walkin' on Wednesday

 So our adventure this week was on Wednesday

And we went over to Byrd Park to walk the

Dogwood  Dell Trail

 Dad and Teka took off down the trail.  

This is truly an urban park, there is city

all around it.  But it is hard to tell that here.

 Ummm....wait up guys. 

I want to go this way.

 Lots of places where you could see

this cute little stream

 And one place where me and Teka

decided to get up close and personal.

 Teka was gonna go wading again

 And I was just sniffing when I got water in my nose!

 Ummm...does this bridge make my butt look big?

 So then Dad spotted this place off to one side of the 

road/trail.  And we decided to explore some.

Muzzer was not happy about the warning sign that 

was talking about things like snakes, and sheer rock 

face walls, etc. 

We all reminded her this was supposed to be an

ADVENTURE!

And she agreed to go just a little way down the trail.

 Boy, was she glad she did.  We saw these growing on a 

fallen tree trunk.

 I got to sniff some more flowers.

And we saw this neat building.

It used to be part of the water pumping system

for the city of Richmond.  And once upon 

a time, they used the top floor as a dance 

hall!   Now it is just abandoned looking, 

but still has good bones and lots of class.

Just like a lot of Southern Ladies we know.

Gussie

Our Monday Adventure!

pony pasture trail

rapids outlook  where teka took a swim

 So, yesterday was our first official day of summer vacation!  Dad has been grading and grumpy all week, but Sunday was commencement (and he got to wear his favorite costume!)  Yesterday was the day final grades had to be in, but he actually finished up Sunday night.

And we celebrated with an adventure!

We all piled in the Gussiemobile early in the morning (9 ish or so) and went across the James River to a place called Pony Pasture.  It has lots of nice trails, runs right along the James River, and we figured we might just walk the trails for a couple of miles and do some relaxing.

We pulled away from the house and got on the toll road and Muzzer says....."oh no, I forgot the camera.  So all these photos are from the park system website.  Dumb Muzzer.

It was a lovely day.  There were only three cars in the pawking lot when we got there, so we set off down the closest trail lickety split.  Teka took the lead.

Of Course!

First loop over, back at the pawking lot and Dad decides he wants to see the Rapids Outlook.

None of us would have guessed what was going to happen next!

No, not bears or snakes or even creepy crawlies.

Dad and Teka walked down to the water and SHE JUMPED IN FROM THE ROCK!

Good thing she still had on her lead!  

I think she was as surprised as the rest of us.

But now we know she can swim!

                                                                                       Dad tugged on the lead, and she got out with a bit                        
                                                                                       of help.  And boy did she shake that water off
                                                                                        quickly.  I cannot do a word for word quote
                                                                                         but she said something about how cold the

second trail of the day

      water was.  With more descriptive terms!

 This was the second loop we did, and there were lots of mucky muddy spots.  We got muddy enough to get our feet wiped, but not so muddy that we were not allowed in the car.

We had a really good time.  Much more fun than trying to figure out the new blogger interface this morning!

We will get better, and that is a promise.

Many thanks to Garth Riley for inspiring this walk.  Good Dog!

gone ORANGE!

We have gone orange for April.

Thanks to Miss Asta and our pals who suggested

we take part in this campaign.

It was lots easier than trying

to join a blog hop. But

there may still

be hope

for that.

Gussie

Most wonderful weekend.

Actually...it didn't start out so great.

Because on Friday I went and got groomed.

And while they are nice folk at Dogma, that is not

my favorite way to spend a Friday, ya know.

But Miss Asta and I BOTH go groomed on Friday,

so we decided to celebrate a bit.

Luckily my sissie E.Rabbit was visiting, and she said

I could borrow her little blue car, which is quite speedy.

If you would like to see all the photos of our adventure

Asta's Mommi made us a smilebox, which you can see

on Miss Asta's Bloggie.

Now I got to figure out a way to turn this bloggie ORANGE

for April.

Gussie

Tactical Error!

So, yesterday in a last ditch effort to send snow

to Khyra Khountry before Easter

the muzzer put all her winter stuff away

in boxes in the attic. And the boots went into boxes

until next year, and the gloves and scarves and

wooly hats went into boxes too, and they all went

upstairs to the attic closets.

And she brought down all of her

fashionable summer frocks

(see above)

and her shoes and sandals

and even her summer jammies.

So far it seems to be working.

Our overnight low is s'posed to

be right around freezing and we

surely have enough moisture to

send along with it.

Sigh. Good thing she kept

out her Bean Boots.

Miss Teka Toy

Our trip to Virginia Beach

Teka and I had a great time at the beach! Here is a Smilebox we want to share with you:

Personalize your own digital scrapbooking design

We hope you had a good weekend too!

Gus and Teka

Tomorrow

Tomorrow we are going to this Boardwalk

It is in Virginia Beach. Dad says it will take

about two and a half hours to get there.

Assuming Muzzer does not see anyplace she

wants to shop or look for antiques.

We are staying at a HO-Tell

Gussie says it had best have room service.

Thanks to our pals who told us about how many

towels to bring. Muzzer now has a stack of ten in the

back of the car! Does this mean we are going to have

2.5 baths every day that we are there?

We have packed our food, our treats, our bowls

our binkies, our jackets, our favorite toys

our treats (Gussie is in charge of this) and

our pillows for the car.

Muzzer has packed tweezers for pulling out

stickers and burrs, her Nook, her camera

and an extra set of jeans.

Dad is taking papers to grade.

Doesn't this sound like a fun time

will be had by all?

Ask our human sissies who

opted out of family vacations

about as soon as they could talk.

The Griswolds have nothing on us.

We will post pictures if the muzzer can

remember how that is done.

But we are only taking the Nook, so

pictures will have to wait until we get home.

respectfully submitted

Teka Toy Dagger

Y'all know this sucks big time, right?

I have only just taken control of this blog.

This is my second post.

And here I am saying goodbye to another pal.

The lovely golden gentleman above is Homer.

He was one of the pack at the Bumpass Hounds,

but yesterday his mom and dad helped

him make the journey to the bridge.

He was ready to go, and with the help of

his humans and the staff at his Vet's

office, he made the journey peacefully

and surrounded by love. If you have

a moment, leave them a note, OK?

He joins Miss Maggie in the crop of "new kids"

and we will surely miss both of them.

Our love and terrier nose bops to their

humans.

Teka Toy (I can't make the link work. If you

want to leave a note for the Bumpass Bunch,

go to www.bumpasshounds.blogspot.com)

(I guess I understand why Muzzer is so

bummed when this happens. Next time

I hope to have better news.)

Rest in Peace sweet Maggie.

Teka here with some truly bad tidings.

Sweet Miss Maggie crossed the Bridge yesterday.

She leaves behind her brother Mitch, her human

Mom and Dad, and a legion of Blogville fans.

Miss Maggie was an inspiration to all "sister" dogs.

She taught Mitch all he knows, kept him in line and

made his life a bit spicier and a bit sweeter.

Thanks to Mitch and her humans for sharing her light

with us -

Teka Toy Dagger

Teka Takes Over

I am getting quite tired of the help around here.

Or lack thereof.

Therefore, I have decided to post so that all MY

friends know that I am OK.

Muzzer!!!!

Come turn this thing ON!

Teka is a Knee-dy dog

My Sissie E.Beth is visiting.

So for a few days, we might have some

pictures that are centered and in focus.

This is where Teka likes to spend as much time

as possible. In the dining room on Dad's knee.

They do the crossword puzzles that way

every morning. I wonder just how

much help she really is?

gussie

Pest Side Story

“Sigh”

I have been a pretty morose doggie lately.

You know, my sweetie Miss Asta is moving to Pest

With her Mommi and Daddi. And while I know that

my friends will help me get across the Pee, it just won't be the same.

So, as a WFT who was pretty much raised on American Musicals,

I have created a new masterpiece!

Based on the Classic West Side Story,

I present the story of star crossed lovers Asta and Gussie, who

mix and mingle with the Pets and the Barks, supported by their cast of

blogging friends.

Act I

1. "Overture" – Orchestra

2. "Prologue" – Orchestra

3. Pet Song" – Buster, Pets

4. "Something's Coming" - Gussie

5. "Dance at the Gym" – Orchestra

6. Sweet Asta– Gussie

7. "I like to Pee in America" – Gussie, Duffy, Scruffy, Jakie, Pets

8. "Tonight" – Gussie and Asta

9. "Gee, Officer Krupke" – Archie and the Pets

Act II

1. "I Feel Pretty" – Asta, Lacie, Agatha , Fergie Koobie, Khyra Lolaancisca

2. "One Paw, One Heart" – Gussie and Asta

3. "Quintet" – Asta, Fergie, Buster, Jake and JH, Pets, Barks

4. "The Rumble" – Orchestra

5. "Somewhere" – Asta, Gussie

6. "Cool" – Pets

7. "A Dog Like That/I Love Him" –Asta and Aggie

8. "Somewhere (Reprise)" – Asta

"Finale" – Orchestra

For Winston, Webster and Willoughby's dad:

Yesterday when we were on one of our walkies, this lovely blue grey car pulled up to the curb, and a man got out and said "more Fox Terrier people, how wonderful."

While the humans never got his name, he did smell wonderful and familiar, and he told me how handsome I was and made lots of friendly noises. He also gave good scritches.

We got to talking about training. And we promised to put our trainer Valerie's contact information here for him.

Muzzer and dad say we are a lot better since she began working with us (and them) and we do appreciate her efforts on our behalf.

Here is what she has accomplished in just about 90 days:

• The magic work is AAAAACKKKK
• Teka and I SIT
• Teka and I STAY
• Teka and I respond to "let's go" with a good strong heel.
• Teka and I SIT when our leashes come out.
• Teka and I will walk by dogs fenced in yards and behind doors and mostly ignore them. Muzzer and dad have learned to "talk" us through the challenge of not responding and it is effective about 85% of the time.
• The other 15%, the humans will put us in a strong heel by turning 180 degrees and walking away from the challenge, then they put us back through it until we hold our heel. And no, no other dog has jumped the fence to get at us while we do this, though there is a Pomeranian a block away who is considering that as an option.
• Teka and I each have a PLACE where we go when directed to do that, like when people come to the door.
• Teka and I have learned to love Turkey hot dog bits. This was not hard.

On the other hand, we still do not respond well to other dogs, particularly those who are off lead and come running toward us. But we will be working on it in the future.

So, if you click here, or on the "here" up above, you can go read about her and find a few of her secrets. And a big Thank you from the humans for a successful training program.

gussie n teka

6:45!

is still not 5:30

News Flash

To Blogging Pals Everywhere

And all the ships at sea.

Teka slept in this morning until

7:00 a.m.

Thereby giving the humans a

wonderful Holiday Pressie.

Way to go little snot.

gussie

Thinking.......

Thinking about the past year

Wonderful and sad

All the places we have been

And all the fun we've had.

Missing all the pals who've gone

To the Rainbow Bridge.

Missing Grandpa Ace but know

He's up there raiding the fridge.

Thinking 'bout the year to come

And the changes there will be

Already missing my Asta Sweet

Wish she could stay with me.

Thankful I have my family

And even Teka Toy

May be sad and pensive now

But I'm a lucky boy!

Hope that all my doggie pals

Will have some time today

To think about the happy times

And the good things on the way.

Sending love to all the world

And lots of kisses too.

Oh, and Teka sends her best

To every one of you.

Happy Howlly Dayz

Teka joins me in wishing you a most happy of holidays.

but first: a disclaimer...

It is really not us in the picture, but muzzer could not resist this card.

Wonder Why.

kisses to all

Gussie n Teka

Teka has been banned from Stony Point!

OK. Yesterday while I was at the dog spa getting clipped, dipped and squeezed, my no good human parents took Teka to Stony Point.

Stony Point is not far from our house. Both of my Sissies have been there, and Mom and Dad go there every once in a while to look for "stuff." Plus, there is a Three Dog Bakery there, so every time they go we get treats and goodies. (Three Dog is on the left hand side of this photo, it has the dog out front.) Stony Point is "animal friendly" which means that most stores which do not sell human food let dogs come inside, and there are water bowls and treat stops.

AnyWay! Their excuse for abandoning me and taking Teka on this outing was " so we can see how well her socialization training is working!"

YEAH. Right.

So off they went like the naive and trusting humans they are, and they were feeling pretty good about their experiment. Got past a Great Dane without Teka attacking. Walked past a couple of Bernese with no ill effects. Had a bit of a moment when she spotted the Westie and the Westie spotted her, but hey...they are terriers after all.

So, they were supposed to be Christmas shopping for the sissies. And they went into Dillards and back to the pajama department, because it is kind of a "thing" for the muzzer to get the children pajamas for Christmas. So. ..... Teka takes one look around, sees there are no pajamas with Jack Russells on them, and takes a BIG (I mean Gussie sized!) poop dump on the carpet.

Now, y'all don't know the parents around here. But they are pretty uptight, and look very Republican and proper. (Even though they are not either, but that is another story and maybe Emily will help me type it at Christmas time.) Can people in their 60s still Blush? Ummmm Yeah Shur, you Betcha!

So, as Teka tells the end of this, Dad picked her up, Muzzer picked up the poop in her handy dandy bio degradable environmentally proper baggie, and they both left the store by the nearest exit. Wish I had been there to take a photo ;)

Hehehehe...Teka spent the rest of the visit in the car. Did the sissies ever get their pajamas? Only time will tell, but muzzer and dad did come home with little umbrellas from their drinks at Starbucks. (and I know they don't put umbrellas in the drinks there, because Miss Lacie told me!)

See. They took the wrong doggie. But I get to go next time, Muzzer said.

kisses to all

Gussie

Kicking off the season

My Pal Bussie reminded us today of this wonderful video (see below) that Pappy and his dad made - lo those many years ago, when DWB was young and new, we were all younger than we are now, and I still got the occasional chicken jerky treat. (don't ask, it is not a pretty story)

Sigh...but this is worth sharing. Maybe you want to pass it along too?

If you are a sad type of human and given to overflowing, you might want to skip this.

None of us are as young as we used to be, and some of us have crossed the bridge. The spirit still lives and we are all better for that.

Blessings to all.

Gussie n Teka

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL OUR PALS !

WE ARE SEARCHING FOR A NEW SECRETARY, BUT UNTIL THEN, WE ARE THANKFUL WE HAVE YOU FOR FRIENDS!

GUSSIE 'N TEKA