I heard from Charles recently and he sent me an updated photo of Che - I'm glad to see that both of those ears are up now! He looks like a happy puppy, doesn't he?



Our daughter is on a homeschooling blog, and one of the things they do is a Thursday Thirteen. I think that's a neat idea, so I'm going to steal it! Since I have lots of dogs and lots of books, I'm listing the last 13 books I've read.

The Winter Mantle - Elizabeth Chadwick
Along Came Trouble - Sherryl Woods
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - J.K. Rowling
Changing Habits - Debbie Macomber
Kicked, Bitten and Scratched - Amy Sutherland
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - J.K. Rowling
Madam of the House - Donna Birdsell
A Girl Named Zippy - Haven Kimmel
Queen of Swords - Sara Donati
Needled to Death - Maggie Sefton
Comfort Me with Apples - Ruth Reichl
The Winter Lodge - Susan Wiggs
Riding Lessons - Sara Gruen

Nemo is Phoebe's half brother; we got him from Chris last August. He's filling out into a beautiful dog and is leaving Thursday for three weekends of shows. I'll miss him, but with the girls in season, I won't miss his whining and carrying on! He really gets himself worked up. He's got a great temperament and is a very loving and silly dog. I look forward to seeing some Nemo babies next year.

Here are a few pictures of Nemo - the shot with the snow was taken in February, when he was about 9 months old and starting to blow his coat. The head shot was taken in April.





I need to take some new photos of him! Maybe tomorrow, if its not too hot or not raining.

Phoebe went to the vet today and got a clean bill of health. Dr. Joe thought she was a "keeper." I agree! She's smart as a whip and has easily fit in to become one of the gang. She has been eating like crazy and I think she's already gained a couple of pounds. She also loves tearing around the yard, leaping into the dog pool, and then digging holes. Nothing is more fun than getting muddy and then trying to jump on Mom! For some reason, Wheezer has really taken a liking to her, and this is a dog that usually ignores puppies. He gives her lots of kisses, something he's never done before. Marc's theory is that he knows his time is short and that he's imparting some words of wisdom to her. Could be, I swear these dogs do talk to each other and give each other advice; mostly about bad things, like when the best time to hit the trash might be, but it could be good things too!

In non-doggy news, last week I saw a hummingbird in the flower garden! I'd never seen one before and I was pretty excited. I ran to get my camera, but by the time I got back, it was gone. I've been looking for it since then, but it hasn't shown up again.

Phoebe has settled in well - she acts like she's always lived here! This afternoon she decided that even though the couch has always been designated a "no dog zone," she should be the exception. She looked so cute and comfortable there, I thought we could just leave her be



She's been having fun exploring the yard, too. She's been playbowing and barking at Shrek, but he doesn't really know what to do with her, so he just spins in circles and looks goofy. When she's bigger we'll see if they can be buddies. Here she is looking down the yard from the top of the hill.

The back yard was heavily shaded by late afternoon, but I did manage to get a couple of quick shots of Phoebe as she explored. Once she is more settled and has grown some undercoat, I'll take more.

After a sad week, it was good to know that Phoebe would be flying to the US from Greece yesterday. Chris called me at 2 am Friday morning to let me know he was at the airport in Athens and everything was a go - Steve and Miriam were going to go to JFK and pick her up and then keep her overnight with them, and Marc would drive down and pick her up this morning.

He got home about an hour ago, and Phoebe is already settling in. She had a good snack, a bucket of water, and has been exploring the house. She's a little bit leery of those kind of noisy air-blowing things on the floor, especially when she hit one with her paw and it fell over, but aside from that, she's taking everything in stride. She's very affectionate and sweet and outgoing, and just the thing to cheer us up. There is nothing like a new puppy

After we have some lunch I'll see if I can get some photos of her. She's totally out of coat - temps in Greece have been very hot this summer - but we'll be getting cooler weather soon, so I'm sure her undercoat will come in soon. She has such a sweet and kissable face! The big dogs are very curious about the new arrival, and each one sniffs as they go by. Right now she's taking a nap - she's had a busy couple of days!