Movie Night - A Western!

Ha roo, pups and cool cats!  It's me, Zim.  Dave and I did an awful lot yesterday - took Mom and Dad on a bunch of walks, napped, stood guard duty, napped, supervised Mom doing a bunch of stuff around the house, napped, had some snacks, napped -- you know how it goes.  We were pretty wiped out by Supper-Dupper Time, so we were both happy to hear Dad say we were all going to watch a movie together!

Dave got into his normal Movie Night position...

"Mmm.... schmuzzle..."

...and I was ready to look for a little entertainment of my own ... but then ...

"Oh, COOL!  A western!"

I love westerns!  They had horses and cowboys (I love cowboys!) and the cowboys whistled to the horses -- I love listening to that!  I watched as long as I could, then all the activities of the day caught up with me.

Zzzzz...

I couldn't help it!  As much as I wanted to keep watching, I crashed.  Mom said it looked like I was dreaming I was one of those calfs the cowboys were roping!

Do you like watching movies?  What's your favorite genre?

Play bows,
Zim

Photo Finish Friday!

Ha roo, pups and cool cats!  It's me, Zim, here with Photo Finish Friday!  Yesterday was an unbelievable day here in Kansas - we should normally be in very low temps with snow and wonderful stuff like that at this time of year -- but it was in the 50s!  (10 or so for our international readers who use "C" instead of "F".) Now, whereas Dave and I think that's just not right, Mom and Dad seem to be enjoying this (I know ... it's crazy!) and so yesterday while Dad was out golfing, Mom, Dave and I hit the beach!  That's right - nothing beats the "We Need Snow Blues" like a trip to the Kansas Ocean!

"Let's chase those blues away, Mom!"

I thought you might enjoy some photo highlights of our walk!

"Are you guys coming?!?"

"Let's get this party started!"

We walked around a bunch then I stopped to check stuff out:

Mom texted that photo to a friend who asked what I was looking at. Mom tried to text back "golfers" but spell check changed it to "folders". "Folders"!?! Ha roo roo roo!

"Why would there be folders out on the golf course?"

"Why would it be 50 degrees in Kansas at the end of December?!?"
"Good point, Dave!"

Thanks for coming to the Kansas Ocean with us!  Hope you enjoyed it as much as we did!

Play bows,

Zim

CSI: Squirrel Hollow

Ha roo, pups and cool cats!  It's me, Zim.  So there we were the other day, me and Dave, taking Mom and Dad for a walk.  We got to one of our favorite places to do a little snoofering - Squirrel Hollow - when I sensed trouble!

"Hey, squirrel friends!?!  Is everyone OK in there?!?"

I have a feel for these things.  Dad wanted to keep going, but I was adamant about stopping to check on my squirrel friends!

"Dad! I have to stop! I sense trouble!"

And then ... I saw it.

Can you see it up there in the upper right-hand corner? Here, let me do a little visual aid:

Check the upper right-hand corner!

That's right - crime scene tape! Right here in Squirrel Hollow!

"Every-squirrel is OK, though ... right?!?!"

From what I was able to deduce, a squirrel's nest got broken into.  Some nuts were taken, but no one was home at the time.  The squirrel community was pointing their bushy tails at some Blue Jays, but I'm not sure how the investigation turned out.  I'm sure CSI:  Squirrel Hollow will get to the bottom of it all.  I'm just glad none of my friends were hurt!

Play bows,

Zim

Wordless Wednesday

Luv and play bows,
Dave and Zim

At Least It's Cool

Ha roo, pups and cool cats.  It's me, Zim.  Remember we got snow last week?  Or actually more like ice, then an inch or two of snow, then more ice ... then -- well, anyway.  Many of you have asked how my really cool snow fort building endeavors have gone.  Hmm.  Yeah.  It's been a challenge, I have to tell you! I haven't had much to work with, but this is what I've got:

It's not much of a fort, but it is really cool.  Literally.

Sadly, the snow thief has all but destroyed my really cool snow fort and there is no snow in the immediate forecast.  Unless any of you who have snow are willing to send me some, I think it's best that I move on to new and different adventures!

Play bows,
Zim

Posing for the Camera

Ha roo, pups and cool cats!  It's me, Zim.  I hope all of you had a wonderful Christmas!  We had a great day, chock-full-o walks, play time, naps, snacks - the usual, only more festive!  Anyway, Mom has been trying to get a "good" (?) picture of me and Dave by some of the Christmas decorations or tree -- you know - together.  Sitting still.  Looking at the camera.  That kind of thing.  It's asking a lot, but after one of our afternoon walks, we decided to give it a go.

We decided we'd pose in front of the fireplace.  Check it out!

I thought that was mighty good, but Mom said she wanted more of a close up and besides, there are marks in the carpet where she had moved the ottoman. (You see what I'm dealing with here, right?)

We let her move in a bit - oh, yeah, did I mention she had treats for us?

"Treats?!?  Mom's got treats, Zim!"

Mom thought we looked way too serious there and asked, "Oh, come on, boys!  Can't one of you smile, please?"  Then she mentioned the "treat" word again.

I flashed her my best...

"Treats?!?  Mom's got treats, Zim!"

...but Dave was kind of singularly focused.  On the treats.  Did I mention Mom had some?  Ha roo.

We each got another treat for our pose - then noticed they were the last ones in Mom's hand. Hmm.  Must mean the work session was over.  All that holding still was mighty difficult - and we were ready for some down time.

"Let's play!"

We hope you enjoyed your day as much as we did!

Play bows,
Zim

Merry Christmas!!!

In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock by night.  And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened.  But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,

“Glory to God in the highest,

And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.” 

(Luke 2:8-12)

Today at Ao4 Headquarters, we all celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  We wish all of you God's rich blessings on this Christmas Day.

With play bows and luv,
Zim and Dave
and our mom and dad!

How Angelic

Ha roo, pups and cool cats.  It's me, Zim.  Did you notice the tree up on the cabinet by the kitchen doorway in yesterday's post?

That's another one of our trees - it has tiny angels ornaments on it (mostly from Germany) and a few olive wood carved ornaments from Bethlehem!

How about we take a closer look! The larger ornaments are down near the bottom of the tree -- right ...

...here, like this olive wood Nativity ornament:

Just as an aside, does anyone think it's odd that we have several small trees set up around the house, up on tables and stuff, instead of a big one on the floor? Crazy!

Here's one of the angels:

And here's an angel in a one horse open sleigh!

Here's a tiny angel in a heart; Mom always hangs this right near the top of the tree:

And at the very tip-top of the tree is another carved olive wood ornament:

A Nativity star ornament! Isn't it beautiful?!?  A family friend sent that to Mom and Dad when she went on a trip to the Holy Land; it's very special to her in many ways!

⁴ Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David, ⁵ in order to register along with Mary, who was engaged to him, and was with child. ⁶ While they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth. ⁷And she gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.  (Luke 2:4-7)

I hope you enjoyed seeing our tree of angels!   Have a wonderful Christmas Eve, everyone!

Play bows,
Zim

Craziness!

Ha roo, pups and cool cats!  It's me, Zim.  I'm starting to get worried about our mom. Yesterday started out OK - a long walk, breakfast, another walk, a nap or two ... then things started to get a bit ... strange.

First, Mom made me model one of her latest scarf creations.

"Seriously, Mom?  Seriously?"

Then she put another one on Dave.

"Woo!  It's UT orange!  Can I borrow this during football season?
Hook 'em, Horns!"

Is it just me, or does that one look like a heavy-duty extension cord?  And does Dave seem to like doing this a bit too much?

Then... the craziness crept into the kitchen.

"Really.  Follow me into the kitchen!"

Check out what she did to the sugar cookies this year:

"Help us, we're melting!!!"

That's not her only crazy culinary endeavor.  Check out what she made and brought to my vet check up last week:

"Bacon and Eggs" - white chocolate, and M&M and pretzels

Oh, sure, the ladies at the desk really got a kick out of them... but they're crazy!  (The treats, not the nice ladies at the desk!)  Do you all think I should be concerned about my mom?  And that she said she's working on something in the Quilt Studio for me and Dave?  Hmm...

Play bows,

Zim

The Patriotic Tree

Ha roo, pups and cool cats!  It's me, Zim.  We still don't have enough snow out there for me to make a really cool snow fort ...

"What an icy, slippery mess!"

...so I thought I'd show you more of the ornaments on our Patriotic Tree.

Ready to take a closer look?

Up at the top, Mom tied one of Dad brass Army uniform buttons on one side and hung this cool eagle on the other:

He's red, white and blue and is surrounded by a wreath of holly!  He's made of tin.

Another of the tin-type ornaments is this modified flag/heart!

Look through the cut-out star... can you see the little soldier ornament? Here's a better look:

He's positioned right by an ornament Mom made one of the Christmases she and Dad spent in Korea. Dad brought some of his fellow soldiers down from "up north", where he was serving in the 2nd Infantry Division, to Mom's house in Seoul for dinner, and she made those for all the guys. Mom said it was a very special evening! It's a good reminder that our troops are serving all over the world, some quite far from home and in harm's way.

Check out this sled ornament:

The ladies of the Command Group at Fort Riley decorated the sled with a Big Red One decal and gave them to some of the commanders' wives right before Desert Storm. Dad deployed to SW Asia about a week and a half before Christmas, so that was very special to her.  It still is!

Dad spent many Christmases proudly serving in the 1st Infantry Division, so Mom also has this on the tree:

She painted and quilted that one.  You can also see underneath the Big Red One ornament one of Mom's dad's brass buttons from when he was a Cadet at West Point.  He, too, served in the Big Red One!

Lastly, just a simple tree ornament Mom made with fabric from one of Dad's uniforms and some cotton batting:

We hope you will remember to pray for our troops, wherever they are serving around the world.

It almost looks like snow on the tree, doesn't it?  Speaking of which... it's flurrying out there.  I better get back to my post!

I hope you enjoyed a look at our Patriotic Tree!  Please remember to say a prayer for our men and women in uniform!

Play bows,

Zim

Wordless Wednesday

Play bows,

Zim

Vet Trip!

Woo, everypup and everycat!  It's me, Dave!  Back in June, I told you about a trip I had to our vet school.  I showed you a couple pictures of me and one of the senior vet students - Amy!  Anyway, I've gone back to the vet school a few times since then, and even if she's not on my case or even assigned to the clinic that I'm going to, Amy tries to come see me!  She wants to have a Siberian just like me one day - and until the time is right for her, I am more than happy to be a stand-in!

Anyway, I had to go in for a recheck for something yesterday and my very wonderful senior student Janelle had given my Amy a heads up that I was coming in!  So even though she wasn't on the Pet Health clinic ... look at who I got to see!!!

Me and my Amy!

YES! It's my Amy!!! Look at how happy I was to get hugs and tummy rubs and ear scratchies from her:

I ❤ my Amy!

I know I shouldn't play favorites ... and I haven't met a senior student or veterinarian or staff member or anyone at KSU that I haven't liked ... but I think Amy might just be my favorite senior student.  

We got a good report, then I went outside and posed by this statue:

We should sculpt a statue of me and my Amy!

You can't really see the statue very well, but you can click this link for a good look at it and read more about it here.  It's called "A Kind Touch" and it's mighty special.

In other news, about that 6-12 inches of snow (they kept changing the amount we were going to get) forecasted for our area...

Here I am on one of our walks this morning:

"Something seems to be lacking here..."

We had a "wintry mix" all night, then snow this morning.  It's still coming down, but ... well, let's just say it was a hard storm to predict, accumulation-wise.  Hmm.

Here's Zim:

"How's a guy supposed to build a really cool snow fort in this?!?"

You might have to wait a bit to build that really cool snow fort, little brother!  Woo!

I hope all of you had a good Monday!

Luv,

Dave

The Hills Are A-Live....

Ha roo, pups and kit-cats!  It's me, Zim!  As I mentioned the other day, we had a sunny, warm weekend, so we got out and did lots of walking!  I had Mom take some pictures of us - especially to show our friend Mango - he seems to think all of Kansas is flat.  Flat!?!  Not in our part of Kansas!  We're in the Flint Hills region, so we have plenty of hills!  Check out this picture of Dave and me:

Look at that hill in front of us! Doesn't it just make you want to break out into that Julie Andrews song? Or do a little yodeling?!?  Well, let's keep walking!

Can you see what I've spotted? Take a closer look!

"Hey, little kit-cat!  I'm Zim!  Want to be friends?!?"

A new kit-cat friend!!!  How exciting is that?!?

We kept walking after I communed with my new friend for a while. Dave wanted Mom to take a pic of this hill for Mango:

"I think the world might end right there..."

Anyway, so Mango - those are some of our hills!  We may not have cool mountains (though it would be great if we could get some - we could probably fit them in right by the Kansas Ocean), but we do have hills!

Play bows,

Zim