What's with this weather?

While it appears that global warming is progressing inexorably, we may as well take a moment to enjoy the unseasonably warm winter. It's not like we were expecting snow where we live, but it's definitely a first to drag the pugs off to Beach Day in January.

mama that water still looks pretty cold

Deedee takes full advantage of her black fur to soak up the warm sun.

this is more like it

Sasha, my darling old pug, still loves the beach. She can't run through the sand and surf as she used to, but she'll still walk with me by water's edge and enjoy a good natural paw scrub.

Cleo not so much.

i do NOT like the water sam i am

Cleo REALLY doesn't like the water. Her flipper paws are just for show.

take me home now demmit

Doesn't stop Cleo from chasing Deedee around the sand, tho. We were also lucky enough to run into 2 other pugs! Joyful sniffing ensued.

ring around the... em, pug butt

Enjoy what you can, little puglets, as our environment hurtles towards its demise.

Cleo is still puppy

When Cleo was a wee pug, she was an energetic little chewy playful sprinting spazz. We called her 'puppy'. As she got older, even at 5 and 6 years old, she retained the same level of energy. We started calling her 'perma-pup'.

Alas, age caught up with her, as it does with all of us. Cleo started to slow down a little, grey a little, and sleep a little more. My little darling, who used to rush down the stairs to greet me home every day, now saves her joints and just waves her tail vigorously at me from the sofa.

She still enjoys a good chew, every now and again.

Note this is the same loofah that is Deedee's fave.

Probably not a coincidence, that.

Certainly puts those humongous teeth of hers to good use.

My little girl will still always be my baby.

A break in the rain

It FINALLY started to rain, just when we thought Wet Winter Willy had passed us on by. The garden (and our reservoirs!) certainly needed it.

The pugs are not so much fans of the rain. Deedee uses it as incentive to do her outside business in record speed. Cleo likes to pretend that she doesn't need to go at all, not really, can't she just come back inside? Sasha, on the other hand, is the only pug that doesn't seem to notice.

This morning saw a small hiatus in the rain. Cleo and Deedee took the opportunity to bask in the sun.

Sasha saw there was a good thing going on, and came over to get some fur-warming action.

Deedee seems very happy to see Sasha

Somehow the pugs managed to position themselves optimally -- 1) for maximum sun exposure,

and 2) for maximum body contact.

The best-laid plans

The pugs got a new bed. To replace the nasty one that's been chewed/peed on/pooped on/washed so many times the filling is clumped up into giant balls of cement. OH WAIT I already did that. That turned out well. The pugs will only sleep in the Very Expensive Bed if there is absolutely nothing else to sleep on, and that includes discarded piles of underwear.

This bed was actually obtained with the intention of having a Back-up Bed. It was not at all meant to be a Primary Bed.

The pugs had other intentions. Within seconds of pulling the bargain bed out of the box, the pugs were on it like flies to dead people.

Little runts even positioned themselves so that each could enjoy maximum snugglage. I will mention here that the pugs actually LEFT their other (fabulous) bed in order to camp out on this ultra-cheap one.

I may as well have saved myself the effort and just thrown down a piece of used tarp.

Look. Deedee and Cleo are mocking me.

Merry super-belated Christmas!

What with all the flying around the country, whilst lugging, towing and stuffing 3 pugs into various travel craft, I may have decided to take a mini-break from posting pics of the spoiled pugs, bah-humbug-style. In any case, hope your holidays were as fabulous as the pugs'.

Actually, there is no way that anyone had a more fabulous holiday than the pugs. Not only were there 2 more pug cousins to play/snuggle with, but also 4, count 'em FOUR, additional humans to sucker into giving them treats, er, I mean, cuddle with.

Just a small sample of the type of goodies they enjoyed:

artisanally-baked dog cookies. seriously. I did not make the 'artisan' label up.

3 pugs verrrry excited to get at some good eats

note the drool

Deedee's got her paws splayed like she's ready to bolt with her prize. no worries, little pug, no one wants to take that slobbery treat away from you.

even Sasha got her (two) teeth into it.

annnnndd.... Cleo's molars in action, up close and personal -- they could double as the jaws of life.