Bossy.....

I don't know what's goin' on w/Lexie..but she's gettin' downright pushy.....kinda flexin' her furry lil' muscles. First, there was the incident w/dad last nite. She had my punkin, two of mom's pillows, her big fuzzy pillow, her tiger an' her kitty all outside. Dad was sittin' in his chair when she came runnin' in, all kind of excited. Usually, she makes a beeline for mom...but mom's not feelin' too good an' was on the couch. So, Lexie went to dad...gave him the nosepoke...(now, dad don't know how our AHS communication works)...he petted her an' thought that was it. Nope...she grabbed his arm..then his leg...pawed him...finally, mom told him that Lexie had a situation outside an' needed him to go w/her.
"Ok", he said as he got up from his chair...Lexie headed for her lil' door w/a backwards glance to make sure he was followin' her. Mom reminded him to tell Lexie "to show" him. 

Out they both went, w/me behind them to make sure everythin' was bein' done right. We followed her out towards the back fence.  Whatever it was...it was gone...so, dad started pickin' up some of the stuff Lexie had taken out. Everytime he took somethin' in the house...Lexie immediately took it right back out. I think her stuffed tiger made about 6 trips in an' out, before dad gave up. She wanted 'em all out there..an' there was no misunderstandin' of her intentions, either.

This mornin'...mom went out an' got a lil' bucket of pecans an' picked some oranges, too. Lexie got on our lil' path there by the garden close to the house...an' blocked mom. She wouldn't let mom go down that path...no way, no how. Finally, mom asked her if she wanted her lil' bucket. Lexie jumped up to get it...then proceeded in the house w/it. She takes carryin' that lil' bucket very serious..an' nobody, not even mom is allowed to do it.

 I tell you, she's becomin' quiet insistent w/her damands on how she thinks things should be. I just hope she remember who is really in charge......

Left Home Alone...but with a chaperone....

Hey...I'm back...well, I never really left.  Mom & dad, did, though..they went on some big ol' boat & left us home & in charge of the house.  Then, like we couldn't handle everythin' on our own....my M'shell came & stayed with us all week.  Now.....I love my M'shell....she's probably one of my most favorite people in the whole wide world.  So, that was ok in my book...plus she's got thumbs.

Lexie & I took care of stuff while she went to work.  I think everything worked out pretty well, although we did have some scheduling conflicts.  For some reason, she didn't appreciate us wantin' to do our regular 3:30am patrolin'.  We were even polite in remindin' her...no barkin', no yellin'...I'd just go over & lay my head on the bed & stare her awake...then as soon as she had both eyes open & acknowledged me...I'd get up on the bed, give her a big kiss, then lead her to the back door.  This is where it got a little messed up...she thought we'd just go out & come right back, so, she waited on us & then closed our lil' door.  Little did she know just how long a thorough patrol takes.  There seemed to be a lot of grumblin' on her part about sleep deprivation.

Then there was the time that Lexie decided to go rogue & not "come right back" on one of our "last calls" one nite.  M'shell called & called....no Lexie.  So, she locked her out. Me & M'shell went to bed.  (I always put her to bed & stayed there till she went to sleep..then I'd get down & go place myself in the center of the hall where I could guard everybody).  About 1am, I went & woke M'shell up & told her she had to let Lexie inside the house.  She got up & sure 'nuff, there was lil' Lexie right there on the other side of the door wantin' in.  Guess, Lexie learnt her lesson, she came every time M'shell called her after that.




M'shell's tough...no extra cookies, not much food sharin', no c'mputer access & she don't even drink sweet tea, so no ice......but we got lots & lots of cuddles...& our M'shell, all to ourselves for a whole week.  I think we made out like bandits. Wonder when mom & dad can go somewheres again.....

Reapin' the rewards.....

Ha ha ha!!

Lexie did it again! Just another example of why it's great to have a lil' stister.....she stole a whole bag of pretzels, grabbed 'em by the bottom (again, she never learns) & runs out her door w/them.  Of course, she's leavin' all the pretzels behind, lol. Not sure how far she got w/her empty bag, 'cause I was too busy muchin' away on her stolen loot.

Transient Workers

Wow...I just may have to change my stance on workin' w/ outside contractors. Here I was just tryin' to help out some non- citizens of the area, refugees from the north that come down here to take advantage of the warm weather an' hospitality. Live an' let live was my motto. Figured that there was enough for everyone...no need to be greedy. After all, I've got a pretty good set up, no need to take away from anyone else.

I had just stepped out on the patio w/mom, while she was on the phone. (She likes to be outside while on the phone...not sure why, but she does. She says it's more enjoyable). There we were, both of us standin' on the edge of the patio, lookin' out on the yard. All of a sudden, her eyes got big an' she pointed at the pecan trees. Before she even got her arm up...I had launched myself off that patio, landin' almost a third of the way across the yard.

Talk about a situation....there was a squirrel on the ground b'tween the pecan trees runnin' for his life...an' not from me..yet....but from a transient hawk! Well, not on my turf is he gonna get a squirrel! If anyone is gettin' the squirrels in my yard, it's gonna be me or maybe Lexie. That hawk isn't even a local!! Obviously, he has no sense of common courtesy. There are rules an' boundaries. He has huge fields an' woods that have open huntin' .....that don't include my yard!!!

I cut in front of him just as he was about to grab that squirrel. At the last minute, he did a sharp turn an' flew off. The squirrel was last seen hidin' about 20 feet off the ground plastered flat on a pecan branch. The hawk was still flyin' off about a block away. I did a quick recon an' then trotted back to mom.

Lexie was pretty disgusted w/the whole thing...her first statement was why didn't I ignore that squirrel an' grab the hawk. She's pretty sure they taste just like chicken.

The mouse an' hole.....

The weather is gettin' cooler..especially in the mornin's.  This mornin', it was almost cold!

 The sun was shinin' all day, but cold..er. Lexie & I have been busy alllll day. We sniffed out somethin' in mom's box of garden tools & stuff that she keeps up on a sink in her green house.   We made her clean it out, as she muttered that was not what she had planned for today,  & sure 'nuff...some little vermin ran off in the bushes. 

You should have seen Lexie. Once she saw mom start takin' stuff out, she started draggin' stuff out, too...everythin' she could reach.  Then it was empty, but then she saw that lil' mouse hidin' in the corner. Lexie was determined to get it...right then...right there.  She kept tryin' to find somewheres to put her leg up, so she could climb up in there. She was hoppin' & stretchin'....finally she walked off & if there had been anything she coulda dragged over to give herself a leg up ....she would have. She looked, too!. 

Anyway, the mouse got away in the bushes. But it was sure fun while it lasted. Mom then discovered my hole...right by the patio. Now...I haven't dug a unauthorized hole...well, since the last time I dug one. It's been awhile. Funny thing, this is the same spot I dug one when I was just a lil' guy. Anyway, mom wasn't pleased. So, dad filled it all in. I watched. All was good in mom's world, again. About an hour later, she came back outside...& lo & behold, guess what she found? That hole magically came back! Same spot, same size & in mom's eyes...the same suspect...me. But there's no proof that it was me, other than the laughin' out loud smug look I gave her, when she was standin' over it. She just looked at me, then nodded & muttered "that's ok...I took care of this problem about 3 yrs ago...I can do it again". Dang it...she did. She went & got some of my poop....of all things...put it in that hole...& then covered it up. She's right...there's no way no how that anyone is gonna be diggin' up my poop. I gave her an appraising look...gotta admit, she's smart. Then I turned away & pawed at the ground about 2 feet away & gave her another look..... :)

No need for excessive Force

Goin' back thru our AHS reports...this was one really for the books. But it demonstrates why us 'dales really are smarter then he average <clearin' my throat> dog.

7:30am-the doorbell? WTHeck? Mom was still in bed...dad had left for work an' Lexie an' I were doin' our "snoozin' w/mom routine". Lexie an' I immediately jumped into action an' sounded off alarms while runnin' to the door.

By the time mom got kinda dressed an' made it to the front door... there, no one was there.

Then we heard 'em in the back. "lectric workers. Lexie & I took off out her lil' door before mom could even make it thru the livin' room. We wouldn't let them anywhere near the backdoor or patio. I was roarin'....Lexie was standin' her ground w/me an' givin' off warnin's that'd made big men quake in their boots.

Finally, Lexie knowin' I had this....went to check on mom, who was still in the house w/the big door shut. , I stayed on the guy till he went back over the fence just like he came, but a lil' faster.

Mom was so proud of us, we didn't bite anyone, but he was a believer & didn't get very far in our yard!! We did our job...protected mom an' the house. He was just a guy doin' his job...but he did not have clearance for goin' in our yard...an' he sure wasn't gonna get near the back door. If he had been puttin' off bad vibes....the story may have had a different endin'. But it just goes to show you that you don't always need excessive force just firm an' clear warnin's an' the willingness to follow thru if they don't listen or believe.

Who's the Angry Bird?

Another pourin' down rain day. Mom's about to go stir crazy....but Lexie's doin' her best to keep mom busy...washin' towels. Couldn't believe it...yesterday, while rainin'...Lexie even went swimmin' in the pond. Mom did manage to keep her door closed & keep Lexie from nappin' in it. I even had to put my paw down at one point. Me & mom were on the couch watchin' tv..& here comes Lexie runnin' in soakin' wet. (She does come inside if it starts rainin' really hard). Of course, the first thing she does is start rubbin' herself against the covers on the chairs & then the couch. When she got to rubbin' on the couch by me...I grumbled at her...hey, I didn't choose to get wet...I was nice & dry in the house. It's rainin' even more, today. Mom's got towels everywhere...including the washing machine (I think she was about to run out). She's already given us a bully stick, Lexie her kong w/peanut butter, played "find it" in the house, dried Lexie off a couple of time....it looks to be a lonnnggggg day. Mom's dug out Lexie's microfiber Angry Bird towel, hopin' she can get caught up on washin' towels. Lexie's finally settled down to nap in the big chair by the back door & watch the rain. Me? Don't tell Lexie...but mom let me nap in her bed, there's nothin' better than listenin' to the rain & bein' able to stretch out on the big bed in the middle of the day..alone...lol