It's Teddy

 

Hi EveryPUGGY! It's been a long time, huh? I am doing quite well for an 11 year old PUG PRINCESS! I am not quite a sprightly as I was as a pup, but I can still get around. And bath day zoomies are still a thing.

I want to introduce you all to a new family member - only this one does not live in our house, whew! This is Teddy, my new cousin. She is the new furbaby of my Cousin E and her husband Cousin J. They have their own house now. Teddy was born in July and arrived in her forever home 2 weeks ago. She is a DOODLE. 

 

 

I went over to their house on Sunday to meet Teddy for the first time. I was chosen because I am pretty mellow about meeting new pups. My only hesitation was - the last two times I met puppies, they came home with us. It worried me, I will not lie. BUT. . .

It was fine. It was pretty evident that in no way was Teddy coming to Casa de Noodles to live.

 

 

So we circled each other and she challenged me to a zoomie contest (I let her win). Then she got up in my grill so I had to LET HER KNOW I WAS ALPHA. After that she was a little scared. Before too long, she discovered she could GET MY GOAT by cuddling up to MY MOMMY. I tried not to get jealous. Really I did. 

My SMART Mommy was wise to her manipulations, though and put me on her lap to stay. Eventually Teddy tired out and all was well.

How’d We GET to August SO Soon?

 

Hi Peeps and FURiends. It has been a long time since I have graced these pages. It isn't for lack of trying. I truly miss you ALL when I am not on Blogger.

So I want to get this out of the way before any of you FREAK! Yes, that is Rigatone. He is 7 months old now and about 30 pounds. BUT he is more of a small Beagle size and NOT Great Dane, as he looks in this photo. AND no, Molly and I are NOT teacup pups. We are still the same average size pups in the Toy Breed. Now, it is true that Rigatone is 3 times heavier than Molly and 2 times heavier than me. But he is not gargantuan.

This photo was taken last Friday when we went to Cousin E's new house for dinner. She let us ride in her Garden Wagon and it was so much fun!!! Lotsa fun. Well, I thought so, anyhow. Molly whined the whole time. And Rigatone could NOT exit the wagon fast enough. Pictures can be deceptive, you see. Me?? I loved it and chilled in the wagon most of the evening.

 

 

 

 

The humans had homemade PIZZA! It smelled so yummy and I wanted some so bad. But I wisely stuck to kibble. It keeps my weight in check and is made of all the flavors I love. But it didn't make me any less inclined to beg.

This coming weekend is a special one for Mommy and Aunt B.

HINT: They are Twins.

Guess Who’s Visiting!!!

Hello FURiends
I know. It has been a long long time. But remember - I am ALWAYS thinking of you all.

It’s summer and you know what that means. . . Lulu is here! She is just spending the night this time - a test because she has never met Rigatone. In a couple of weeks, she will probably stay a week while my Aunt T and Lulu’s peeps are out of town.

The first meeting, a couple of hours ago, was crazy. Lots of barking and excitement and running. But now it’s all good. I think she and Rigatone will be fine. And you know Molly and I loves loves loves Ms Lulu.

Work From Home Means a Blog Day

Here I AM!!!! I have NOT disappeared nor gone AWAY. I AM HERE!

Whew! I am glad I got that off my chest. Ever since Mommy went to work in an office, I have been stuck in LIMBOland with this blog. She just doesn't have the bandwidth (her term, not mine) to get my posts published in a reasonable time. She hopes she can find that magical rhythm again soon.

So life is NOT really normal but we keep plugging away at being happy, healthy and hole. Yeah, that should be whole. . . I played with the language because I couldn't think of a reasonable word with an H. We have Mommy #1 and Cousin C home ALL THE TIME. Aunt T is home most of the week - goes into her office 1 MAYBE 2 days. Mommy and Aunt B go to work because they are essential workers (they work government finance and property taxes. Money is essential to keep the government running. As Mommy puts it - there is no government money or services without taxes - and it is her (and Aunt B's ) job to collect it. So they strap on their masks and arm themselves with hand sanitizer and go to work. It is the new. . . can I really say NORMAL? I sure hope this is not normal and that someday soon we can return to life before PANDEMIC.

My Mommy #1 graduated from university with a Bachelors degree in Finance and minors in Math and Urban Studies (teaching). She was hoping for a job or AT LEAST a paid internship in finance but with companies shut down, those opportunities also shut down. BUT she was offered a paid teaching job through Teach for America. It is a two year commitment but she is okay with that. Teaching is actually her dream so it works out. Sadly her college career ended with the beginning of Shelter in Place (SIP). There was no ceremony. . . no saying goodbye to her friends . . . no senior outings . . . nothing normally associated with the end of 4 years at university. There will be a graduation ceremony at some time but it may be a year down the line. She is handling all of that well, though. She is a SUPERSTAR in my mind,

So all I gotta say is I am healthy and in a month will be 11 years old. Can you believe it? I feel like a puppy, though. Until THAT puppy starts to jump around and run in circles.  .  . then I realize I am NOT a puppy at all.

Love you my FURiends

What the H Happened to Twenty-twenty?

Hi Peeps and PUPS! It’s been a long long long time - I KNOW. It all started at Midnight December 31 when it became 2020. Life has NOT been the same, I tell you! It’s just gotten weirder and weirder in some awful and not so awful ways.
First of all - well . . . This happened

You all know about my new BRO, Rigatone. I like him and all but man oh MAN! The boy energy coupled with the puppy energy! Sometimes I just don’t know which way is up. Molly’s having NONE of it and spends a lot of time upstairs DARING him to cross her path. Which he does so then she chases him and yells at him. And he’s so good natured he just gallops away - and the does it again. I like him most of the time but he will get my goat when he sidles over and purposely LICKS MY BOWL!

Then there is Mommy #2’a work. She is an essential worker and goes to the office every day. Her hours are weirder, tho, so she leaves very early in the am. She does cone home earlier in the day but it is not really compensating. She is gone and for me that is a hardship. I was so used to her office being HOME! It’s good to have Mommy #1 home and Aunt T and Cousin C, tho.

Mommy’s hours are also why MY BLOG never gets written. I can’t do it myself and she’s not home to do it. Eventually we will figure it out.

I worry about her a lot being out among OTHER people. The virus is everywhere and you just can’t be certain where it is safe. She says her office takes extreme measures to make sure she is safe. And she has to wear a mask when she is at work as well. She says it’s not so bad but she does miss the potlucks and camaraderie in the office. Nowadays they just do their thing and go home. All “socializing” is via Skype.

Mommy and Mommy also participated in a birthday celebration via ZOOM. It seemed pretty fun only they weren’t people I know or care about. I was hoping one of the peeps would be Princess Leah’s folks so I could chat with her at the same time. But they weren’t on the Zoomabration.

On the one hand I love having the family around all the time - but on the other hand, I can tell they are stressed and trying hard to make everything seem normal - but it’s not.

Remember when everyPUGGY said “Have a Nice Day!” whenever they left or ended a phone call. Do you every hear anyone say THAT anymore? No - you don’t huh? It’s been REPLACED just like normal has been. I am on the fence about it - it seems sincere but sad:

Be Safe and Stay Well

It’s just not doing it for me. . .

Happy 17th Sunshine

We’re all so HAPPY that we have another BIRTHDAY to celebrate for Sunshine! She has been struggling this year (haven’t we ALL?) and looks every bit her many years. But she still feisty and mouthy and we wouldn’t have it any other way.

Happy

Birthday

Sunshine

A Little Calm is in Order Here

This is a Live Shot which may not work as a video

This is a live shot which may not work at all but is pretty

The OCEAN is so calming. I wish I was there right now, but I understand the need to stay home

YOU need to CALM DOWN humans!!! What is the big deal about SHELTER in PLACE? So you stay home and watch TV! Isn't that what you all aspire to do anyhow? I've seen you on the weekends - jammies all day, beverage at your side and a table of snacks. The only exercise you get is lifting the remote control and letting me out to do my bidness.

What's the big deal now? Just because it is mandated? Same stuff.

So get back over here and gimme your lap. Enough of this whining about not being able to go to TARGET! Let's savor this lap time while it lasts.

Pee Pee Pads All the Way to the Horizon

Hi FURiends. It’s been a crazy week here at Casa de Noodles. So much is happening and not happening. But one thing is for sure - it is NOT dull.

I am reminded every day that life with a puppy is challenging. We aren’t just talking the biting and barking and chewing; although those things are definitely happening. And I am trying so hard not to react harshly to the little guy although sometimes I cannot help it. I find myself getting fonder and fonder of him each day.

I gotta say, though, WHEN CAN WE STOP the WALL-TO-WALL pee pee pads? You cannot walk a step in this house without stepping over or around a pee pee pad. Bless his lil’ puppy heart, though - he USES them! Accidents? He’s had a couple. But mostly he is a good boy.

Mommy's a Writer Who Knows a Writer Who IS a Writer . . . and So On

This AWESOME bed is from Mommy #1's friend Auntie A.
When I am in it, it is A BOWL of Noodles - BOL!!!

I am kinda out of practice so bear with ME.

Mommy loves to READ. And I love to BE on Mommy's lap when she READS. (I am actually talking about Mommy #2 but this is true of BOTH of my Mommys). By osmosis, I believe this makes me a reader, of sorts.

Mommy has a lot of FRIENDS. She has this one friend who always dreamed of being a writer and one day, SHE DID IT!!! So far her books are all self-published; but some day she hopes a PUBLISHER will pick her up. Then she might make a living on this thing called WRITING.

Currently Mommy is reading "Mom Genes" by Hilary Grossman. It was written by this friend.

Mommy met this friend through BLOGVILLE. You may know her as "Feeling Beachie." Mommy says she related to the blog right away as she loves the beach. They eventually exchanged some emails as well. So when BEACHIE decided to write a book, Mommy said she would love to read it.

The rest is history, of sorts. Beachie has published 4 books and the fifth, "Mom Genes" is set to roll out NEXT WEEK. Here's a LINK to Amazon where you can order the book. You can also find it at other places online.

So Mommy is still reading the book but she wanted you all to know that it is true to Hilary Grossman's style - it has believable and complete characters and an entertaining plot. Some of it Mommy says she has lived as a MOM on the PTA. And also true to BEACHIE's books, Mommy is enjoying it even though Chicklit is not a genre she generally reads.

Consider this more of a PRE-review. She hopes to say some more. . . maybe tomorrow. Might as well take advantage of this SHELTER IN PLACE law.

Sheltering In Place

Oh! I KNOW it has been a long long time. Ever since Mommy #2 took that job at the county, she has been so erratic in posting my blog. She tried Pre-writing them but she hated that they were untimely. So we are figuring it out.

But right NOW she has no excuse. Silicon Valley is under siege from the Coronavirus and she is home because of a SHELTER-IN-PLACE order from the county! All of her jobs are on hiatus. It is a little scary and a little groovy because she's home. And because of the nature of her job, she cannot work from home. So she is basically being paid to clean our house and write my blog. Good deal - for me.

At the same time Mommy #1 graduated from university. Not exactly just that, though. The school closed face to face classes during dead week and THEN closed altogether as finals approached. Online is where it is at. Thank goodness this is the era where online tests are possible. She will graduate on time.

So Mommies #1 and #2 spent the past weekend moving her home. HOME!!! I am so happy to have her back here. . . BUT

She came home bearing gifts - more specifically, this one

Meet Rigatone (Tony for short) my new brother. Yes, a brother with a snout. He is 10 weeks old and a total mutt. We are seeing dachshund for sure in his stubby legs and snout. Colorwise he looks lab. Who knows at this point. . . But he is HERE to STAY which means I am constantly confronted by puppy TEETH, BREATH and ENERGY. It is a little overwhelming on this semi-old gal. But at least I am handling it better than Molly. She stays upstairs as much as possible. She is curious but intolerant. She went full-on POODLE on him yesterday. He was a little shocked but not scared. He is a feisty one.

I think I will like him fine.

Something New For Me

A Bowl of Noodles! Get it?

Barking for Change

And the only way to make Change is to 

VOTE!

VOTE!

VOTE!

I pugsonally helped my ‘rents decide because - well I am brilliant.
So even tho the primaries are over here in CA, I say INVOLVE yourself in politics. No matter what the level. It your voice and your right. Make it happen.

Note: I wrote this yesterday but my THUMBS got busy and did not publish this. Sheesh.

Reminiscing Because It’s Friday

Hello Everypuggy
I hope you all had a marvelous week full of treat and cuddles. I got my share, of course. But I do wish I had a few more (of both, if truth be told) Mommy time. She gets home so darned late that we MIGHT get an hour of cuddle time, depending on how tired she is.

But that is not what I am here to talk about. We all know how cuddles go. No, I am here to chat memories that make me happy.

This is what jogged my memory -

Chewy.com sent us this travel mug back in the day and now that Mommy is leaving the HOUSE for work each day, she started using it for her coffee. It is a great cup and keeps her coffee hot ALL morning - or however long it takes her to drink it up.

It reminds me of our days as Chewy.com Influencers and all the best fun stuff they would send us. It was such a bounty. tote bags, balls, gift boxes, tshirts - dresses (for me), frisbees, TREATS . . . The list goes on and on. In return, we tested and reviewed products. Some were definite HITS and we still buy them to this day. Others - well they can’t all be winners, huh?

Working for Chewy.com was just plain fun. It gave us an easy BLOG POST to write once or twice a month. And let’s face it - the company was just plain FUN to be a part of.

But then the Influencer program went away. The company was bought by PetsMart and they have a strong marketing presence without using Influencers. Chewy.com and it’s overall mission of an online store of PET HAPPINESS survives, though. We still buy all of our food and supplies from Chewy.com.

Sweet memories like this are a wonderful way to celebrate the end of a long week.

Thank you Chewy.com for so many sweet memories.

Wordful Wednesday

Does this look like SPIT to you?

Old Yeller . . . As IF

Mommy keeps calling me “Old Yeller” and I thought she was giving me a “CUTE” nickname - as she often does.

And then I heard there was a movie by the same moniker and I was flattered although it is a sad sad story about a faithful dog. THAT I am. Not the OLD part, just the faithful. That is where the similarity ends. I’m neither old nor a retriever, as in the movie.

My FURS are F-a-w-n, Mommy! Not Yellow!

It was bugging me so finally, during our evening cuddle, I asked “Mommy, why do you call me Old Yeller?”

Because, she said sweetly, you have been YELLING all the time lately.

A-hem.

My box bed is looking pretty comfortable about now.

I’m Still Here Just . . .

I have been doing more than my share of lounging lately. It’s almost become laughable. But it isn’t. It’s because my Mommy’s new job keeps her from helping me  regularly chatting with you. That’s right. It’s HER fault.

My typical day is something like this

• Wake up before the dawn and LICK until my Mommy gets aggravated enough to get up
• Run outside to do my bidness
• Run into the house and straight to my DISH which better be FULL
• Plop down in my box bed and wait for Aunt T to make her lunch
• Enjoy the constantly dropping foodables Aunt T drops for me
• Return to my bed box while everyone finishes dressing
• Go outside for a post meal jaunt
• Bark like crazy when Mommy gets ready to leave
• Wait for Aunt T to gimme a treat when she leaves
• Go back to my box bed and sleep until a human comes home to FEED ME

That’s what I do everyday - basically just waiting for Mommy to return home from work. That’s long after dinner and long long after the sun has gone down. She comes home - we cuddle and hour and then it is bedtime.

And THAT is why the blog has not been regular lately. 

Sunbeam Adventuring

Sitting in the SUN - it is so FUN

What’s THAT I wonder - I think I’ll wander

Ooh smells SWEET - what a TREAT

You caught me, I admit it - time to take a SIT for a BIT

Huh? What’s up little Flower?

It All About My ME!

I have something NEW to show you and I gotta say, I am super proud of it. See my new BOWL for foodables? It has my NICKNAME on it - Noods. You KNOW something is extra special when it has your special secret-not-so-secret NAME on it. And you know what? I absolutely love love love it.

My new bowl and THIS AWESOME tee shirt was given to me as A PRESENT by Mommy #1’s bestie Auntie A (or S depending on her mood but that’s another story). She gives me lots of head skritches and cuddles when she sees me which isn’t as often as I would like. So anyhooooo - she and Mommy were out shopping post-Christmas and she saw this stuff with my NICKNAME on it. And she thought of me. Isn’t that the most heartwarming thing you’ve ever heard?

 I feel absolutely like a SUPERMODEL in the tee shirt and it didn’t take too many treats for Mommy to bribe me into posing. I WANT to show it off and eat from the bowl and, well, I just like staring at it. I can’t even get mad that the company who designs and sells the stuff STOLE my very own unique NICKNAME for profit and gain. Why? Because it is so CUTE, like me

 As you can tell, I LOVE IT!
Thank you Auntie A/S for being such a super auntie and thinking of me and spoiling me but not in a bad way but the GOOD way. I am gonna give you an EXTRA special SMOOCH next time we meet.

Weather Permitting, of Course

Hi my peeps and pups
It is I, Noodles the pug coming to you from NOT so Sunny California. It’s cool, too.
Well. To be completely honest - and I am - it is downright cold. In fact, we have snow on the mountains behind the hills behind my house. It’s much closer than these photos make it look. These were taken from my Mommy’s new work place. You cannot see most of this snow from my house. BUT you can feel it.

If you BiGIFY these pics you can really see it.

To a lot of you, snow is NBD. But for me - it really is. 

I don’t mind a little rain when I go outside to do my BIDNESS. But I really don’t like it to be cold. I drag my paws BIG time when it is cold. 

And to quote my new fave television show “The Mandalorian” 

“I have spoken.”

Baggin’ It!