Come. Sit. Heal.

I recently wrote an article for children about Therapy Dogs. I am already a dog lover, but through my research, I gained an even deeper respect for Man's Best Friend. A dog's ability to heal people goes beyond our comprehension. Mostly because they achieve this through the simplest means. Dogs heal us by just being. I have a dog, a goofy chocolate lab named Lily. Not everyone sees the best in her, but I do. She's like my second child, my shadow, and I can't imagine life without her. She's even chewed up my favorite pair of shoes and an heirloom sewing item that was my grandmothers, but I love her no less. I came across this little tidbit during my research, and I wanted to share it. The author is unknown, but clearly knows dogs. Enjoy.

If you can start the day without caffeine,

If you can get going without pep pills,

If you can always be cheerful, ignoring aches and pains,

If you can resist complaining and boring people with your troubles,
If you can eat the same food everyday and be grateful for it,
If you can understand when your loved ones are too busy to give you any time,
If you can overlook it when those you love take it out on

you when, through no fault of yours, something goes wrong,

If you can take criticism and blame without resentment,

If you can ignore a friend's limited education and never correct him,
If you can resist treating a rich friend better than a poor friend,
If you can face the world without lies and deceit,

If you can conquer tension without medical help,

If you can relax without liquor,

If you can sleep without the aid of drugs,

If you can say honestly that deep in your heart you have no

prejudice against creed, color, religion or politics,

Then, my friend, you are almost as good as your dog!

The Shoe Saga

Many of you are familiar with the antics of my dog, Lily, but did you know about her insatiable passion for cute shoes? Ever since she was a tiny puppy, Lily has thoroughly enjoyed chewing my shoes. Notice I said MY shoes? She could care less about hubby's or child's shoes, which are left lying around the house on a daily basis. I go out of my way to keep my shoes out of chewing reach, but somehow she always finds them. I remember one day I found her eating my absolute favorite pair, the shoes that I simply adored and so did everyone else (strangers would stop me to comment on those shoes!). I was upset for days, until I found another pair on Ebay. Brand new (which was surprising since the style was a couple of years old) and in my size! I convinced the seller to end the auction early and sell them to me. After reading my sob story, she agreed and sold me the shoes at quite a bargain price. Yes, we women really do understand the shoe thing.

I also have a favorite pair of slippers, a pair that I bought while very pregnant with my son, and they are the most comfortable pair of slippers I have every owned. I wore them in the hospital after a somewhat difficult childbirth, and even though I looked like heck, I had cute and comfy slippers so I didn't care. Shortly after Lily joined our family, my favorite slippers fell victim to her shoe fetish. I scolded her and immediately got on the computer to search for another pair. I found a black pair, which were not at great as the fabulous green color I had before, but beggars can't be choosers, right? Within a week I had my slippers back and things were good.

Fast forward to this morning, where I am now on my FOURTH PAIR of these dang slippers. Apparently Lily loves them as much as I do! It took me a bit longer to find them online this morning, but I did and ordered six pairs (just kidding). I guess the shoe saga will continue until she tires of chewing them, and since she's not even two yet, I have a feeling it's going to be a long hard road for me and my shoes.

Easy Fall Decor

I planned on putting my Fall decorations out today, however, I must have forgotten Lily the Lab ate most of them last year. Once I was done crying because all my adorable scare crows and hand-made decorations are gone, I set out to decorate with the simplest items I could find. If you're looking to add some easy Fall touches to your house, try some of these:

Let Fall greet your guests at the front door by setting out some unique pumpkins and gourds. I love the handle on this Wolf pumpkin. For a simple door decoration, I purchased a cinnamon broom from the grocery store, cut some fall grasses and cat tails (my son thinks they're corn dogs) from my yard and added a few sunflowers.

Create a harvest swag by tying ornamental corn together with raffia. I have this hanging on a pub mirror in my entry hall.

Decorate indoor trees with fall leaves, mini pumpkins, gourds and ornamental corn. Fill a wicker cornucopia with the same items to add a touch of Fall to your kitchen. Bowls or platters filled with fall squashes, like acorn and butternut, are also a nice touch.

How to make your own dog biscuits

I'd like to think I get my cooking talents from my father. He is one incredible cook - the man can cook anything and hardly ever uses recipes (yes, he's one of those types). Anytime I need cooking advice, he's the one I call (sorry, Mom). So when I wanted to try my hand at making homemade dog biscuits, I called my Dad. Of course he makes his own dog biscuits, why wouldn't he? He also makes his own dog food. I'm not there yet, but I figured I could handle the homemade dog treats.

DAD'S HEALTHY DOG TREATS
2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup cornmeal
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 cup molasses
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup milk
2 tbsp. oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Process all liquids and sunflower seeds in a food processor until seeds are finely chopped. Add dry ingredients and process until dough ball forms. Add more milk as needed to make dough workable. Roll dough out on floured surface to 1/2" thickness. Use any shape cookie cutter and cut treats out.

Since these do not rise or expand during baking, you can place them close together on your pan.

Bake on an ungreased cookie sheet for 30 minutes. For crunchy treats, leave them in the oven for one hour after baking. Once completely cooled, store treats in an air tight container.

The verdict from Lily the Lab? Yummy Yummy!

My Dog Ate It

This is Lily, our 15-month old Chocolate Lab. She is our first Labrador Retriever, got her at 12 weeks of age, and it has taken us some time to get used to her energy level and chewing capacity. (BTW, if you're wondering what dog breed is right for your family, click here) She looks so calm in this picture - but looks can be deceiving. Her full name is Lily B. Good, and she is truly a thief. She gets LOTS of playtime each day; walks, fetching tennis balls and swimming in our pool (we live on 3 1/2 acres of pure dog heaven). Even with all this exercise and play time, you still cannot take your eyes off her for one minute. If you do, she scours the house looking for things to chew. Here is a peek into Lily's culinary adventures JUST THIS WEEK:

• 2 sponges
• a red and purple crayon
• 1 ink pen (great...)
• a stuffed poodle
• Jaden's favorite fish drinking cup
• 1 hose sprayer attachment
• 1 sprinkler head
• 1 block of Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (Jeeze Lily, that stuff's expensive!)
• 1 plastic hanger
• 1 small jar of brown kids paint (non-toxic, thank goodness)
• Hubby's slices of pizza for dinner Wed. night (I told you not to leave your food out)

Oops! What am I thinking, trying to blog when I don't know where the dog is! Gotta go...I think Lily is up to something...