Whose blog is this?

Hi, everyone ... it's me, Tucker!  I know that we haven't been around much this week, but for once it's NOT because Mom was doing her best to work 24/7.  Actually, we've been on vacation this week, but still haven't had much opportunity to blog, because Mom's Aunt (our Great Aunt) K. has been in town visiting.  Well, actually, she's been at Grandma & Grandpa's visiting, and so we drove down there to stay at Grandma & Grandpa's, so that we could visit with Aunt K., too.  And that has been fun, except that Mom has been too busy eating, drinking, shopping, laughing, reminiscing, and looking at old pictures that I'm not even IN to help me blog. 

Between that and Finn basically taking over the blog the last week or so (which I allowed only because the cause was a good one), you might have forgotten what I look like.  So in case you have ... here's a little reminder.

I might be a little scarce this weekend, too ... Mom let slip that more eating, drinking, and general merry-making involving still more family members (probably all gathering to look at a bunch more pictures that I am not in) is on the agenda for this weekend.  But we'll still try to visit our friends a little bit when we can.  Maybe Sunday night. 

Until then, don't forget me, ok?

The Cookie Chronicles ... Part III

Happy Thursday, everyone!  It's me, Tucker!  Twice before on this blog, I've shared the trials and tribulations I've experienced  in the never-ending story I like to call The Quest for the Cookie! 

So yesterday, I was here at Mom's office taking a nap on my fuzzy blue bed (it is so soft and cushy, and never fails to send me off to Dreamland!) ....

Me, dreaming of cookies ... 

when all of a sudden I heard Mom say ... "Come on, Tuck, let's go to the cookie bank!"  

Well, as you can imagine, I was ALL IN when it came to that plan!  A cookie bank!  How had I not heard of such a place before?!!!  

Me, ready to go to the cookie bank!  

I could just imagine the vault ... rows upon rows of delicious cookies brought there for safe-keeping ... big ones, little ones, fancy ones with icing and sprinkles on top!  Friends, my mouth was watering!  But as far as I knew ... I had not made any deposits in the cookie bank ... so how was I supposed to make a withdrawal?  Were we going to HOLD UP the cookie bank?!!!!!  Mom is not a violent sort, and is normally a law-abiding citizen, so I couldn't imagine that was her plan, but I decided if it was, I would stand by her side and support her, just like I always do.  We could be a regular Bonnie and Clyde team, robbing cookie banks all over the place and then going on the run.  But then I remembered that Bonnie and Clyde eventually died in a bloody shoot-out ... and that didn't sound like such a good time.  I decided that I would have to talk to Mom about this if it appeared she was in fact going to hold up the cookie bank to get me some cookies.  After all, we already had at least seventy two bags of them at home in all different flavors, so I figured we were good for awhile.  

I gotta be honest ... I was pretty nervous there for a second.  Well, imagine my surprise when we pulled up to the regular old green paper bank and pulled around the side to the same drive through we always go to.  Phew!  Mom wasn't about to take me on a crime spree that could only end badly. That's when I realized ... I'd been mistaken.  I must have been dreaming, like the Traveler's commercial dog!  Mom must have said "Come on, Tuck, let's go to the bank and get a cookie!"  That made a lot more sense! 

But as you might remember, there have been times when I have been bitterly disappointed at this same drive through window ... 

So I put on my most earnestly adorable face.  Like this: 

Hello there, Nice Lady In the Window!  Would you be so kind as to send me a cookie through the cookie tube?  

And voila!  

Praise the Cookie Gods!  My adorable face worked!


But that wasn't all!  When Mom got her deposit slip back, there was a whole 'nother envelope with THREE MORE COOKIES INSIDE!  

YES!  It was a good day! 
 

You may also like: 

Part One: Excuse Me Miss ... You Forgot My Cookie!

Part Two:  The Cookie Gods Are Smiling!

Two-fer Tuesday With Tucker & Phoebe

It is sunny and HOT here in Tampa on the longest day of the year!  (North of the equator, anyway!)  Happy Summer Solstice, everyone! 

I call this move ...

Half on - half off!

Hope everyone's having a great day!

Happy Memorial Day!

Hi, everyone ... it's me, Tucker.  (And Phoebe and Cosmo and Uncle Riley) ... wishing all of you a Happy Memorial Day. 

And to all of our retired and active service men and women (and their families), thank you for your service.  We appreciate your courage, and the many sacrifices, large and small, that you make to keep us safe.  We should not need a day on the calendar to remind us that freedom is never free. 

We're not lost ...

Our Mom's just really super lame these days.  Did you happen to notice that all the pictures/videos in our last three blog posts were taken in Mom's office?  There is a reason for that - and it's because we've basically been living there the last couple of weeks.  Now, I am as dedicated an employee as anyone ... and more so than most ... but I am getting fed up.  There are other things in life besides work ... and plus, helping Mom at work so much has forced me to neglect my blog and miss out on visiting our friends as much as I like to.  And, I'll just cop to this right now ... Remington, I promise that we haven't eaten any of your treats or played with your toys, but Mom has still not gotten to the post office to mail your package.  Olivia is mortified, as I am I.  And even if I have to put the bitey on her, like our friend Spitty suggests, I will make sure that it goes out on Tuesday.  (Well, ok, I won't bite Mom - I just couldn't.  It is not in my gentle nature to do such a thing.  BUT - if I have to mail it myself, I promise on my honor as a canine, that it will be in the mail on Tuesday.  Promise!)

So anyway ... Phoebe, Cosmo, Aunt K. and I are at Grandma & Grandpa's for the holiday weekend and we've been really busy playing with our Uncle Riley.  On Monday we're going to have a BBQ - I'm looking forward to that.  Maybe tomorrow I can get Mom to take some pictures of us to post so you don't forget what we look like.  But right now, Phoebe and I are tired ... and I think we're going to have to go to bed now.

Night night!

P.S.  Spitty, Olivia sends her love.  She, Tanner, and Finn are home getting "sat on."  They are not happy.  Then again, they wouldn't be happy if they were here, either.  That is one of the troubles with cats.  They are only happy when Mom never goes anywhere.  But of course that means that then Phoebe and I don't get to go anywhere either ... so since I love to travel, staying at home being sat on is just something they have to deal with every now and then.  Mom left lots of treats and nip, so I think they'll survive till we get back. 

Monday again ...

And I don't know about you guys, but I needed at least one or two more days of R&R!  (I spent part of yesterday getting my hairs washed, conditioned, and Puff-ified, and that always makes me tired.)

Maybe I'll catch a nap right now...

TGIF!

Happy Friday, everyone!  It's been a long, hectic week ... and I'm looking forward to the weekend.  We've gotten an unexpected reprieve from the early summer heat, and I'm hoping that the nice weather will last through the weekend.

Meanwhile, Phoebe and I have been busy helping Mom shop for our friend Remington , who was the winner in the drawing Olivia had a couple of weeks ago.  One thing's for sure - it's a new experience for us to shop for a pup as big as Remington!  Some of the toys we  looked at were bigger than Phoebe!  But we had a lot of fun doing it, and so did Mom!  And since Olivia, being a cat, doesn't really enjoy shopping trips all that much (she prefers to stay at home and have them delivered to her - isn't that just like a cat?), she asked us to pick out a few little things for Remington's cat sis, Ozabella. 

Tomorrow Mom's going to take everything to the post office and send it away to our friends.  We hope they'll like the things we picked out for them. 

Here I am giving the loot a quick review to make sure everything passes inspection ...

Well, have a great weekend, everyone!

What we do ...

Hi, everyone ... it's me, Tucker!  Sometimes people (and pups) wonder what it is that we do at work all day.

So we shot this short video so you could see Phoebe and me hard at work ...

Have a great day, everybody!

* Mom note - In watching this video it sort of looks like Tucker is mauling Phoebe, or that she is not enjoying the play session.  In fact, this was about thirty minutes into the session and she was getting tired, but previous to this had been tearing around like a Tasmanian devil.  Trust me, she always gives as good as she gets, and she loves to roughhouse! 

Tucker on Tuesday ...

Hi, everyone ... it's me, Tucker!

                         

And I'm just at work helping Mom today.  What's everyone else up to?

Just call me Paw-casso!

Hi, everyone, it's me, Tucker!  And, I just realized that I completely forgot to share with you my artistic masterpiece from last weekend!

So here it is:

It might not look like much ... but I worked really hard on it!

SEE?

 

It looks better if I'm in the picture, too!  Don't you think?

Ok, gotta go!  I think we're leaving work soon!  

A Day of Thanksgiving ...

Good morning, friends.  It's me, Olivia.  And I've been thinking ...

Earlier this week, I posted about how Mom forgot my birthday .  And to be honest, I still wish she hadn't forgotten.  On the other hand, though, I also know that it's not presents that make a birthday or other holiday special.  The most important thing, not just on birthdays or holidays, but every day, is that we have people to love, who love us, and I have that.  And even though Tanner and Finn do bug me sometimes (like about 23 out of every 24 hours), I wouldn't really want them to move away.  Well ... sometimes.   

Anyway, the point is, now that my righteous indignation over my forgotten birthday has faded, I realize that I'm a very lucky girl indeed.  So instead of thinking about ways to get even with Mom for forgetting it, I'm going to GIVE  a present to one of my new friends! 

All you have to do is leave me a comment telling me what your favorite birthday or Gotcha Day present has been, and I'll put you in the hat (really I'll use one of those randomizer things) to receive a very special present from yours truly.  The present will depend upon who actually wins, since I wouldn't want to send cat treats to one of my woofie friends, or vice versa.   

Well, have a restful Sunday, everyone  ...

Me, with my favorite brother ...

Sunshine, Blue Skies, and Balmy Breezes ... (otherwise known as the perfect spring day)

Happy Saturday, everyone!  It's me, Tucker ...

Yesterday was all sunshine and blue skies, with the added benefit of a lovely breeze that helped keep the sun from getting too hot.  (Unfortunately, yesterday was a workday, so we didn't get too much time to really enjoy it.  So I hope that this weekend will be more of the same!) 

You know, here in Tampa ... it's a lovely time of year ... right now.  But the truth is, we don't have spring like other places in the country have spring.  We don't have the whole daffodils springing up from damp green earth thing going on down here, although the azaleas are lovely right now. 

In fact, the "seasons" here often seem nonexistent, though a true native Floridian such as myself (a rare breed to be sure) can discern the difference.  But you do have to pay attention.  For example, our "spring" such as it is, can be rather short - sometimes it seems that as soon as we "spring forward" and start getting more hours in the day to do stuff like go to the dog park after dinner when it's still light out, Mr. Sunshine (and I don't mean Matthew Perry) seems to get significantly hotter ... and sometimes he gets so hot that he seems downright angry and almost as though he thinks we have misbehaved down here and he needs to punish us.  I can't figure out why, because I am always a very good boy, and though they're not as good as me, my brothers and sisters are pretty good, too. 

So Mr. Sunshine ... if you're listening ... we'd like to have several more weeks of this current weather, please.  And if you oblige me today ... I think it'll be a perfect day for cruising with the sunroof open ...

Have a beautiful day, everyone!

Strolling and Sunning on Sunday ...

Hi, everyone ... it's me, Tucker!  It's been a nice, relaxing couple of days this weekend, and the weather has been gorgeous with blue skies and cool breezes.  Here in Florida, it won't be too very long before we're complaining about the heat and humidity, so days like this are really precious and it's nice when they fall on a weekend so we can really take advantage of them. 

The cat kids have been outside on the porch since early this morning, stalking lizards and doing cat stuff ... and Phoebe, Mom, and I just got back from a nice walk ...

Olivia ... relaxing.



Tanner - enjoying a nice stretch ...





Finn - watching Mom

Phoebe  - looking for squirrels ...

Phoebe and me ... relaxing on the wooden bridge ... 

 Phoebe and me - in front of the Garden Club gate ...



Have a restful Sunday, everyone ...

Tucker on Tuesday ...

Hi, everyone ... it's me, Tucker!  I haven't blogged in a couple of days, because between you and me, what with helping Mom at work, watching after the other kids (I am the big brother, after all!), patrolling the house and yard, well, I'll be honest ... I've been busier than a noseless dog in a butt-sniffing contest! 

I won't bore you with all the numerous responsibilities with which I am entrusted every single day ... so I thought, instead, that I'd post a couple of the pictures Mom took of us this weekend.  Hope you enjoy.

Here's Tanner.  Mom took it with that lomo thing she's so on about these days, and then put a sepia and oil painting filter thing over that.  I think he looks sort of funny because it looks like he doesn't have any ears.  Mom says he is pretending to be a Scottish Fold (they do have ears, but the way they are folded down they look more like owls than cats sometimes!)

This is Finn on the cat tree in the living room.  Mom used the same settings as on Tanner's photo above.  Mom really likes this one. 

Here's Olivia looking at Mom.  This one just has the oil painting filter over it. 

Here's me in one of the chairs at Mom's work.  It was taken on the lomo setting with an oil painting filter over it.  I think I look regal in this photo.



Me again - same settings as the picture above.



Here's Phoebe out on the balcony behind Mom's office ... sort of similar to the photo she took of me with the lomo setting and the oil painting filter over it.  Phoebe likes to look at the boats.  This one is now Mom's screen saver.  Should I be jealous?

Phoebe and me on the picnic tables outside Mom's office.  We had lunch out there on Saturday when Mom was taking a break from looking at storyboards.  (I don't know what those are, but they take a long time to get just right.)

Phoebe and I relaxing on our office bed.  (Don't we look alert?  Mom had a cookie she was holding up that we really wanted!)

Me ... chillin in the grass after our picnic. 

Me ... resting after some hard running.  See how long my tongue is?

This is what I call my "you WILL give me anything I want" face! 

Back to business as usual!

Hi, everybody!  It's me, Tucker!  And I bet I know what you're thinking ... the MP has been hogging all the posts lately, right? Well, tell me about it!  I finally had to sit her down last night and explain as kindly, but as firmly, as possible, that I am the one whose name is on this blog, and therefore it is MINE!  She mentioned something about being the one who pays for stuff, but I think that's irrelevant.  I am willing to share.  I am NOT willing to have MY blog completely taken over.  Not even by Mom, even though I love her a lot.  And so ... Mom will probably be back in the next couple of days to post the next post in the 50-50 series, which I do fully support, since it is all about showcasing shelter dogs and cats who need great homes like the one I was fortunate enough to get.  (Though Mom is always saying that SHE was the lucky one to get ME!!! ... and who can argue with that?!!)

Meanwhile, I thought I'd post this photo Mom took of me the other day.  I was sitting out on the balcony of our office watching for manatees (still haven't spotted one, though) and Mom snapped the picture  She took it with her lomo setting and then she put the oil painting filter over it.  I think it came out pretty good, myself, and so did Mom.  It's currently her screen saver.

I also like this one of me looking at the boats ...

Have a super weekend, everyone!