Nose Bombs and Snow and the Doodle Launcher

Let's get the 'nose bomb' thing out of the way.  For those of you who don't know what a 'photo bomb' is, it's when a person/dog/thing unexpectedly shows up in a picture.  Mom wanted to get some pictures of me sitting, being the good dog that I am.  And here I was, being a good photographic model:

Yes, I am pretty, and I AM The Good Dog.

All as it should be.  Until Abby decided that since she hadn't been the center of attention for all of 3 nanoseconds, she should be more involved and she nosed her ginormous snooter in front of the camera.  And thus she nose-bombed my photoshoot.

"Hi Mom!  Don't forget about me!"

You see me still sitting patiently in the background...

But I had the last laugh.

"Abby, all I can say to you is 'Pfft'.  Oh, and notice that I have a petite snooter compared to your Hipposnooterus."

But it's all good.  I love my sister and her ginormous snooter.  And you notice that while Abby features in a lot of the action photos, there are NO pictures of Abby sitting patiently.  Just saying...  Heehee!

Speaking of action photos...  We've had snow on and off for most of the week, and with cloudy skies, by the time Mom gets home from work it's sometimes hard for her to get good action shots, but she keeps trying.

The low light gave the shots neat look...

This weekend we had a combination of sun and snow, and Mom tried to take advantage of the few sunny hours to get more action photos.

Sproing!

Dogzilla attacking Mothra.  Or possibly being attacked by Mothra... It's hard to tell.

Sproing again!

We were having a grand time in the snow going after frisbees when it appeared as though the 'Doodle Launcher' (the mythical device which is credited for Abby's 'amplitude' in her frisbee leaps) was on the fritz...

"Houston, we may have a problem..."

Abby as Mobius strip... I don't think that's right, either!

Abby didn't pick up on the fact that the Doodle Launcher was possible broken, until this 'fling' late in the afternoon...

"Houston, we definitely have a problem!  Expect re-entry somewhere over the Pacific Ocean." 

Luckily, Abby was retrieved in one piece while the sky started to cloud over again.

We then continued our frisbee antics throughout the weekend.

A little duct-tape and the Doodle Launcher seems to be working fine again.

 

Sunday has been very windy, resulting in much additional ear-flappage.

More wind-assisted ear-flappage!

Snow zoomies!

"Frisbee, you are MINE!"

More snow zoomies!

On our walk Sunday morning, it was snowing and very windy - to the point that the Donner Party (us) decided to turn back a little before the halfway point.

"Follow us, Mom!  We know how to get home!"

Of course, Mom has also spent time getting head shots - something about how pretty and/or goofy we are...

A rare photo of Abby almost looking at the camera!

Apparently Mom cannot get enough pictures like this.  Can you blame her?

Abby's a goofadoodle.  But she's a happy goofadoodle!

Me?  I'm looking extra floofy due to the wind!

And we'll leave you with Mom's favorite photo that doesn't include us  (or at least doesn't include us directly)...

*kissey face*
-Fiona and Abby the Hippobottomus

Wordless Wednesday: I Had The Park All To Myself!

*kissey face
-Fiona

A few loose ends

Now that we are back home and have real internet, I wanted to post some other pictures from the trip.

One of Mom's favorite things to do at the Nationals is walk around and look at the cars. And since I like walks, well... It seems like a perfect match - Mom gets to look at cars and I get a walk.

And any ear flappage is a bonus!

So, more pictures of cars...
I think this car goes about as fast when it is on jack stands as it does when it is on the ground... (GP is also called "Grandpa Prepared"...)

Now this car... X Prepared. Fast AND pretty.


And Mom took this picture because she thought it was pretty funny that these people had brought a tent for their tires!


And I think Mom is doing a pictorial Christmas Wish List with this next one... (Because Mom is nothing if not subtle. And yes, I get all my subtlety from her. Heehee!)


Whew! All this walking around and looking at cars in the heat and humidity is tough work!


So I had to snoozle for a while.


Here's Mom in our car (before it was retired). Note the rather complicated dash! Heehee!

I think Mom has her name on the back of her helmet so people know who just knocked down all the cones!

And here we are, on the way home! Last year I fit in Mom's lap. This year? I only partially fit in her lap! But I was quite comfy, thankyouverymuch. (And yes, this picture was taken from the driver's seat. While driving.... And if Dad and Uncle Charlie could 'hot swap' drivers in the House With Wheels, taking a picture is NOTHING! And if you don't know what a hot swap is, I'm not going to tell you, because it would probably only worry you!)


And the scenery on the way home was pretty much the same as the scenery on the way out. Since we took the same road and all....


I had a great time, and I'm very proud to be able to say that I have been at every Solo Nationals that I have been alive for, and I would like to continue this trend (hint, hint, Mom). I had a great time, and can't wait for next year. But I'm also happy to be home. Fall is hitting the Wasatch Mountains, and I can't wait to go on a hike tomorrow. And, no Mom, that wasn't a hint. That was an order; I spent 4 days out of the last 9 motoring across 2 Really Boring states, and then back again. The least I deserve is a hike. Because I need to scrub my brain of all of those mental images of eleventy billion acres of corn. I swear, if I see an ear of corn in the near future, I may, well, bark a lot.

*kissey face*
-Fiona

Pee Ess: Mom says that the awards for correctly identifying the "Flames! There are flames on my car!" quote contest have been awarded. Congratulations to Khyra who answered first! Her prize is going to The Last Resort Animal Rescue and Sanctuary. And the Southern California Vizsla Rescue is also getting a donation, even though Dennis' Dad had to cheat! ;-) Thanks for playing! And for those of you who didn't know, the quote comes from the original (1979) version of the movie "The In-Laws" with Peter Falk and Alan Arkin. Mom's seen the movie about as many times as I saw cornfields in the last 9 days, and she aspires to have a car with flames on it.

Ball Chasing for Dummies

(Or maybe just for poodles, who, erm, sometimes need a little instruction in the fine art of chasing bouncy squeaky things. Luckily I'm only half-poodle, and my Retriever side comes out when squeaky balls are being thrown.)

Anyway, on to the fool-proof* instructions.

First, show the ball thrower that you are well-behaved (at least temporarily) and can be trusted in the park.


Second, Keep Your Eye On The Ball


Third, a good launch is important

Although there is no one 'perfect launch'
Fourth, race after the ball with enthusiam

Fifth, remember to KEEP your eye on the ball



Because if you don't, well.... Sometimes you completely miss it... Which is kind of embarrassing... Especially when your Mom gets pictures of it...


If you are watching the ball, you can catch it out of the air (or at least try)!




Of course, once you've got it, it is equally important to go racing back to the ball-thrower. Ear-flappage, while not imperative, adds style points. As does using your tail as a rudder.

Because you want them to throw it again, right away!

And there you have it. Ball chasing made simple.

Did I mention that I went to The Park today? And that Dad can throw the ball a LONG way (whereas Mom tends to throw like, well, a girl...)? I really like this whole Park thing. And my Green Squeaky Ball? Best. Ball. Ever.

*I did mention that this might not work for poodles, right?!? ;-)

*kissey face*
-Fiona