My furry boys

Hello there - thanks for coming to visit my blog.

I'm actually writing this post while sat on the sofa watching Britain's Got Talent.  The dog really did it for me the other day.  I am totally in love with it.  The first time she came on with him, I actually cried because of the close bond of the two of them.  That dog clearly adores her and it really plays on my heartstrings - and that's because I know what that dog must mean to her.  As a family, we had our first dog in 2005, a Bedlington called Dylan.  He's a bit of a funny one keeps himself to himself and appears to be a bit nocturnal - rarely plays during the day.  He sits very proud and his gait is very 'show ring' style.  Here is a pic of him not quite making eye contact with the camera:

Last August, quite out of the blue we acquired a 5 month old Shih Tzu puppy.  He had been mistreat and it was a matter of the couple either giving him up, or my sister reporting them for cruelty to the RSPCA (they were a relative of her OH).  The day my sister brought him certainly changed our lives.  I absolutely adore him.  We renamed him Buddy (it was Zorro but it really didn't suit him).

He follows me around everywhere (and I mean everywhere).  He waits outside the bathroom while I shower and at first likes to investigate the noise of the shower.  If I go upstairs during the day for anything, he'll follow me and lay on the edge of my bed.  He follows me to the garage and to peg the washing out... I think you get the picture!

He's so funny, mischievous, naughty and great company for Dylan - that's when Dylan wants to play.  He loves the cats and follows them around, which sometimes turns into a chase - despite being told not to do it.  The feeling from the cats is not always mutual mind.  He does try to get near them:

This is just after Buddy had surgery - he always tries to get near to Tiggy
- he was a bit hampered here with his 'lampshade' on - although he managed
an impressive Houdini act quite a few times and escaped from it!

Here he is on the sofa in the conservatory with Katie Kitten (I still call her that even though she is
approaching 5 years old).  He does love them but sometimes he pushes his luck and she runs off behind the TV!

My husband has just had a new greenhouse - well, one of those with the green plastic covering.  He had a smaller one but it finally became victim to bad winds and rains in the last few months - and he'd had it some time.  Anyhow, no longer had he put it up and started to put his plants in etc, that Buddy decided it would be a good idea to chew the corner of a grow bag and have it all over.

Greenhouse zipped up, my husband nipped out somewhere at the weekend and no sooner had he gone, both dogs had found a way in... they chewed the corner to make it loose enough on the frame so they could crawl under the bottom at the front in order to get in.  Well, my husband lost all of his pepper plants last year to Buddy's penchant for plant pots - of any size, of any colour.  He never learnt from the first one going - he lots them all.  This year, the late frost and bad rain of the last couple of weeks put paid to some of the stuff he'd planted, bearing in mind the last mini plastic greenhouse was in a bit of a sorry state!

Once he'd done this, he kept the plant pots as a trophy - empty pots are dotted around the house - these are his favourite 'toys'!  Most of his toys are improvised from something he shouldn't have had in the first place.

Here are a few more shots of his exploits:

This was the first pack he'd had all over the drive, the packet at the bottom of the picture would
have been his next victim had I not caught him.  I thought he was being quiet - and that usually means trouble!

A 'snowball' bauble which had become victim at Christmas
- as well as other stuff off the Christmas tree!!!

This is my husbands GQ magazine after Buddy met the postman
before anyone else did.  This actually came in a grey plastic bag too.

This was once the tie-back to my lounge curtains.  Despite being told and told to leave them alone
this is how it ended up one mischievous day

This is what happened to my leather toe-posts after I turned my back one day...
It's not the first or only pair he's had... there is very often an odd shoe on the lawn or drive - or in
his hiding place under the kitchen table where he goes if he's pinched something!!!

The following pictures are some of the places he gets himself into - and too good a photo opportunity to miss!

This is my mums 'chariot' - I've also got one of the cat on it at a
different time - they must fancy a ride or something!

Sat at the table - he'll take any opportunity if someone hasn't
put the chairs back properly!

He started getting into the bath not so long ago.  It usually means he wants a drink of water
so I have to fill up the jug we used to use to swill the bath out with.  I then have to
clean the bath out because of the footprints.

How ironic he should be napping near this pillow!

Dylan ripping into his Christmas pressie...

another shot of Dylan doing his favourite thing... he loves pressies!

Here is a picture of my gorgeous fur-babies.  They're probably waiting for a treat here.

So, a little insight to my lovely fur babies.  I love them both dearly, but there is just something so special about Buddy.  Something that opened up a very special place in my heart.  I think this is why I cried  when I saw Ashleigh perform with Pudsey on Britain's got talent.  Although Buddy will only do the basic few commands, I see the love they clearly have for each other and it makes my heart swell because I know exactly how that feels.

I know this post is nothing to do with crafting - but if I'd have gone on a tangent during another post - it would have made it a bit longer than this one.

big hugs

Paula xxx

Not quite WOYWW... just 2 weeks late!

Well, in the last couple of weeks, I've attempted to write two blog posts - unsuccessfully.  Both have been WOYWW posts.  The first week, I'd taken all of the pictures of my desk etc, but I think it's because I had so much going on that I knew I wouldn't have the time to visit anyone, then last week I did my photos again and even started to write my post but I got faffing with setting up my networks so I got them all through MSN, which is great.  I didn't know that you could do it and had never seen the screen before which enabled me to do it, so I thought I would have a go and I seemed to have cracked it.

Do you ever start something one and get totally distracted by doing something else out of curiosity?  Well I do it all the time - I think its why everything I do seems to take me so long.

Anyway, here are the photos that I would have blogged.  I've only put this last weeks in as I don't think its worth showing the week before seeing as its changed since then because boy, have I been busy!!!

This is a selection of my desk in different states over the time I meant to blog last week - you'll see a mixture of before and after pics, but first of all, for anyone who remembers my WOYWW 2 weeks ago, I had showed a picture of my mixed up distress inks on the little shelf above my desk... well I think it was within minutes of blogging my need to sort them out, that I - well erm, sorted them out.  However, I've sorted them out again since this pic was taken and hopefully will actually get to blog a WOYWW post this week.

This is the first pic I took in this little series... It was taken at night time because the light was on -
I only put this on once I lose natural light as being in the conservatory, it is generally OK in the daytime. 
I don't even need the light on in bad weather.  I could do with ear plugs though sometimes
because the rain and hail is so loud we sometimes have to shout to each other to be heard! 
Anyway, here you can see I've had my glue gun and heat mat out as I had been working on
some projects which I will show in due course.

This is definitely a much tidier desk than it had been - you can spy one of the projects I've been
working on - on top of the printer.  Oh and for those eagle eyed of you - those 2 'GU' tubs are nothing to do with me
my OH put them there thinking they might come in handy - like I haven't got enough rammel already! 
Best bit about it was, he didn't even clean them out.  I hate that... I'm forever telling my lot to wash tins out
before they put them in the recycling bin.

This was taken in the morning in preparation for me blogging - I know that because my phone and tablets
(in the white alarm box) are out on the desk.

I've been playing a lot on my Cameo recently and attempting to design my own stuff just using the tools in the tool bar - rectangle, round rectangle, ellipse, polygon and curve shape.  I 'drew' a pram earlier just using my mouse pad on the laptop while I was sat on the sofa...  I've drawn shapes similar to spellbinders labels - just using the ellipse and rectangle shapes... they're pretty simple really.  I like to hunt for freebies and also see what I can do on my print and cut feature.  My next cut project is going to be a baby card and 'BABY' bunting - in blue because my friend's daughter is due a boy - I think she must be overdue by now and very fed up because she has a condition which means she cannot walk and has ended up in a wheelchair during the later part of pregnancy.  Its a condition that affects her pelvis - the name evades me at the moment but I think its known by 3 initials.  I'm sure someone out there will know what I'm talking about.

Well, that's all from me - don't want to bore you too much in one go!!! lol.

'Til next time, take care and happy crafting.

Hugs

Paula x x x