Hours of Cheap entertainment

Our dogs are in love with peanut butter. When the were younger, I would wipe it all over the sides of their crates when I wanted them to be quiet. Now, it's more fun to put it on the outside of the backdoor window, and watch them lick away.

They love to stand next to each other for this fun activity. I put two dots on the window, so they each have a portion.

It's fun to watch how big their tongues get when they are intent on getting all the peanut butter.

Eventually, they get tired of bumping heads, so they become synchronized in their head tilting.

And here they are, leaning the other way. 

Rai, forever a lap dog.

Raisin recently went to the vet (for a hystiocytoma on his chin, which with medication, went away). He weighed in a approximately 55 lbs. And yet, he still thinks he is a lap dog. The other night, he crawled onto Chris's lap, or should I say BULLIED his way onto it, and then plopped down and proceeded to chew on the red kong ball. Due to his new "throne", he couldn't hold it between his paws like he usually does, so it kept rolling away. He'd hop over and get it, then back to Chris to get comfortable. Finally, Chris just grabbed the ball and held it while Rai chewed.

Here are the two, looking quite comfy...

And here's a better look, showing how Rai doesn't REALLY fit on Chris's lap, and has to brace himself with his paw on Chris's foot.

And here he is again. Notice Eden's fur in the lower left hand corner. She also tried to climb on Chris's lap. We've decided that she is upwards of 70 lbs. right now, so she and Rai definitely DO NOT fit on ANYONE'S lap at the same time...

And here, notice that Chris is actually HOLDING Rai on his lap, to keep him from falling off...how did they become lap dogs? 

Sunbathing Dogs

Eden and Raisin often like to lay in the sun and take naps in the morning. I've been trying for weeks to get some good ones of their current "bathing" position, which I find to be pretty hilarious. Obviously they are scared that they won't look evenly tanned...

Eden, going for that all-over glow.

Now, trying to make sure the sun hits her arm pits.

Rai, in the classic "laying on your back to sunbathe" position.

To all who are disgusted by the pictures...naked DOG sunbathing is not the same as naked PEOPLE sunbathing...Sorry for any "too blatant" doggy privates, but they don't wear undies. 

Eden, the Rhodesian Ridgeback/Boxer mix...

So, the other day, Chris heard some barking in the backyard, so he went out there to see what all the fuss was about. He saw Eden, mad at Rai, with the hair down the lower half of her back, standing straight up! That is the first time we have ever seen her REALLY mad, usually she just gets fussy and trots away. Mostly, though, she is extremely easy going. Anyways, so that got Chris thinking...maybe Eden is part Rhodesian Ridgeback? So he looked up other Boxer/Ridgeback mixes, and he found some pictures. I can't find the ones he did (they were better), but here are two...

Does she look just like Eden? Same face, same black nose, same tuft of white on her chest...

And she doesn't look like Eden as much, but there is still enough similarity...

Here's Eden with me.

And again...

Our dog book says that Ridgebacks are loyal and affectionate. They also get to be upwards of 85 lbs. The other day, I lifted Eden, and she's got to be at least 70 right now...I made that up, but I think it could be true...Anyways, they were bred to trail big game and then bark to attract the hunter's atention. And funny enough, the other day while we were hiking, a couple of deer bounded across our path. Rai just looked at them and got in a little bit of a frenzy. But Eden took off after them, trying to climb up a steep hill...Looks like she is a true hunter... 

Puppies first Thanksgiving!!!

This was our dogs first Thanksgiving, so we made them up a plate/bowl, and let them go at it. We figured, since they probably could smell it much more than we could, it would be unfair not to let them taste it. Plus, with my "cook for the multitudes" affliction, we could more than afford to give some to the salivating puppies.

Here are the two bowls all filled up.

We gave them a slice of ham, a slice of turkey, a green bean, stuffing, mashed potatoes with a dollop of gravy, and a roll, broken in half to allow full chewing action.

Here's Eden, making short work of her feast. We did give them a scoop of kibble also, when they were done.

Here's Rai. He learned the "Do you like Seafood?" game. 

Eden, our cuddle dog

Eden has always been the more affectionate of the two dogs. When I sit in the corner of the kitchen, she will inevitably budge her way in to sit or lay at my feet. She also likes to just lay down and watch you walk around. Rai, on the other hand, will sit for a minute, and if he doesn't fall asleep in that minute, he will be up jumping on something he's not supposed to, within a few seconds. So, Eden is our good cuddle dog. Rai is a pain in the butt, but definitely TRIES hard.

Eden loves to get her belly rubbed. If you start to pet her, she sometimes rolls over to show you her belly. And if you stop before she's done, she nudge you or nibble your hands, basically saying "Keep going."

Eden also falls asleep pretty soundly. She doesn't mind of you move her around. Not that we did. She just happen to fall asleep with Chris JUST like this!

She really is sleeping, though. She just looks at you when you move her, then closes her eyes. And she's super soft, so as long as she smells okay, she's a great pillow. 

Huachuca Canyon hikes

Chris and I have been taking Rai and Eden for walks on Ft. Huachuca, up the canyon. We have begun putting them on 10ft long tethers, because Chris is going to try to train Rai to be a bird dog. He has to work on coming back, not just going. Probably a good thing. Anyways, since Rai gets to, Eden does, too. (On a side note, we think that Eden is part boxer, part....Rhodesian Ridgeback!!! So that makes her a hunter of LIONS...pooh on Rai's birds!...more on that later...) Anyways, we walk with them up the canyon, threw a few small streams or trickles. It's a lot of fun, except for the part where I sprain my ankle EVERY time (except the last one, where I wore ankle braces on each ankle, and mostly watched the ground for those rocks that jump out of no where.). In these pictures, we just walked up a super steep incline because I wanted to see what was up there (more steep incline). Then, we turned around and walked back down. I'm much better with the down, than the up.