A "Crate" is NOT a "Fort"

Mom keeps saying, "Look, Mary-Margaret. Your teddy bear is in your fort." I am not naive, you know. It also looks a lot like something I saw on TV yesterday morning.

"Crate" is new for me. I was sort of hoping that it would stay in the box in the back of our car. No such luck. Darn! Miss Lynne put it together for me and then tried to tempt me inside with a big spoon of cream cheese. Unfortunately, Mom let me watch "Animal Planet" before Teachers got there.

See, there was this really big alligator in a lake and nobody could get him out. So the alligator trapper took fresh chicken and fresh fish and he put it both outside and inside a huge "crate". It looks just like mine, except they called it a "trap". Then they hung a piece of chicken from the top so that when the alligator tried to eat it, the door would snap shut. I learn a lot from "Animal Planet", and I haven't been inside my "trap" yet. But I have stuck my head inside to see what's up. And Mom put my dinner inside it last night. I sort of paced back and forth for a bit. When it seemed ok, I did stick my head in over to my supper dish. Funny thing is, it just happened to be chicken. What a coincidence? I don't think I ever ate so much so fast before. (urp!)

'Scuse me.

Mary-Margaret O'Brien

Miss Lynne & Miss Lois, My Teachers

Here's me, Mary-Margaret O'Brien, with my teachers, Miss Lois and Miss Lynne. Today, February 27th, 2006, I completed my Cool Dog Course. The next time I see my teachers will be to get my graduation certificate. I hope Mom will let me take more classes. I do SOOO love to learn things.

The very last things I learned was "heel" and "crate". "Heel" I kinda already knew but didn't have a name for it. Me and Mom like to take walks together, even if it's only around the back yard and the bird bath.




Here's me giving my teachers an "I LOVE you" kiss. I know it's my last lesson and I really REALLY don't want them to go. We are such good friends now. Maybe Mom will let me visit them or maybe they will invite me for a sleep-over or maybe we can do a play date? I don't know, and it's so hard to think about not seeing them any more. I'll work on it.

Love, Mary-Margaret

Miss Letty and Me

Miss Letty is ever so nice to me. I will do almost anything she asks. Here, you can see what good friends we are. She asked me to give her a "high five", and I did. She gives me a treat. Don't tell her, but I would give her a "high five" even if I didn't get a treat because I just love her so much.

She's one of my favorite Puppy School teachers. Truth is, they're all absolutely the best.

Sincerely, Mary-Margaret O'Brien

Sunday - February 26th

Pretty dull day. Had a bath, got dried and combed out. Love that cream rinse by Pantene. It leaves my hair so silky and manageable. Went to the office, slept, played....slept some more. Went to the market, had dinner (fresh baked chicken thigh and leg), and have been watching TV ever since. I just took a break from Animal Planet to let you all know that I haven't forgotten you. Just sometimes nothing really special happens and we just unwind from the week. Tomorrow I think I have lessons but Mom's waiting to confirm with Miss Lynne. I have been everly so good for the past few days. Maybe I'm just growing up.

Oops...more Animal Planet is on. Good night and God Bless.

Love, Mary-Margaret

Dancing With the Spars

This is me and my good friend, Sandy. Mom took it at Puppy Class today. No matter what we're doing, come the end of class, Sandy and I have to have the last dance. We stand up and sort of spar with each other at the same time. This time our leashes got so tangled that Sandy's mom said they looked like a Chinese Knot. It took her absolutely forever to separate us.

Sandy was my boyfriend. But then, as it turned out, we both like to play the field and wrestle with other pups. Sometimes it gets a little crazy like, for example, here's SugarBear on the bottom, with Sandy on top of him, and Peaches on top of Sandy. It's more than I can handle, so I just turn my back and go play with my other friends.


Mom took me to PetSmart today and I got a new dress. I also wanted to take a bag of puppy biscuits to class for sharing with the other kids, so we bought those, too. Mom broke down and bought a "crate" and a lambswool padding for it. So far, it's still in the back of our car and I hope it stays there. I don't think either me or Mom want to be separated yet. It'll be bad enough when she goes to Hawaii, but at least I'll be with my Auntie "C" and Jason, and Cailin and Clancy, and Uncle Rudy and Cousin Mo. Mo's a cat, but a really COOL one. We get on pretty well together.


Here's me in my carseat getting ready to go home after Puppy Class. If I had my way, I'd stay much longer. But as soon as I hit my blankie (which is on the bottom of my carseat) I usually fall fast asleep. Puppy School is the most fun thing in the whole wide world.

G'night everyone. Sleep tight!

Love, Mary-Margaret

Sarabi - Where are you?

Dear Sarabi:

All my baby teeth except for the big sharp ones have come out. I don't have any more money yet, though. I hope you are ok because you haven't written for a while and I miss you.

My mom dropped my leash today and I ran all around the back yard trying to get her to chase me. She just walked into the house, opened the refrigerator, and got out a piece of string cheese. Then she said in her normal voice, "Mary-Margaret....CHEESE". Well, I heard "cheese" and I walked right into the house and then walked right over to it. Like, I know she is a lot smarter than me, but I just never thought that she'd use cheese to catch me. So when I got right up to the cheese, she stomped on my leash and reeled me in like a trout. I will have to remember that she gets sneaky sometimes.

But still, I do love her anyway.

Mary-Margaret O'Brien
Investigator-In-Training

Why I Just LOVE our Pouch

Every day about 4:00PM our "pouch" man comes into the office. It's a big blue courier bag with a zipper on top. See it on the left? Our number is E-050. Usually there are oodles of envelopes inside, mostly for my mom. Sometimes there is an envelope addressed to me, Mary-Margaret O'Brien.

Today, my Auntie Leslie (E-041) sent me a present. It was in a white envelope addressed to ME. Mom opened it near the floor where I was standing and right away I stuck my head all the way inside. I pulled out the neatest orange squeaky plush bone. See me holding it? I ran all over with it and I got even more excited when I found the squeak. I need some help from Mom to write a "Thank You" note. But until then, I hope Leslie reads my blog. Then she'll know how much I love my new toy and my Auntie Leslie, too. Thank you thank you thank you sooooo absolutely very much.

A thousand tiny wet licks from me to Auntie Leslie!

Love, Mary-Margaret

Happy Birthday, Auntie "C"

My Auntie "C" is having a birthday today. She doesn't like telling her age but my mom says that she remembers having Auntie "C" exactly 31 years ago today. :o)

I weigh more than my Auntie "C" did when my mom and Papa John took her home from the hospital. But I think most of MY weight is fur, collar and my "pendants".

Mom says "Happy Birthday, Colleen!". Mom told me that no matter how old Auntie "C" gets, she'll always think of her in her little yellow blanket sleeper looking and talking like Yakky Doodle. I don't know who Yakky Doodle is, but I plan on finding out one way or another.

I just LOVE my Auntie C with all my heart.

Mary-Margaret O'Brien

Dizzle, Dolly 'n Me

Thursday, 2/23/06: Guess who forgot her camera....AGAIN! Maybe next week she'll remember. I'll ask her to write herself a note.

My old friend, Dolly, was at Puppy Class with her dad. Dizzle was there, too. It was kinda neat with all THREE of us Yorkie types running around together. For the first time in my whole life I felt like a real PACK! Only one slight problem, but we deal with it: We're all ALPHA types. We all want to be leader.

Mostly Dolly and me wrestled and boxed. Dizzle was off trying to charm Miss Jewel, the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. And if Jewel knocked him silly, he'd work on her brother, Jake. Dizzle is indefatigable when it comes to his objets d'amour. Dolly and me...we're not into that. We'd rather run and play. Dizzle got so glued to Jewel that his dad even picked him up and had a stern talking to with him.

Dolly and I both wear matching collars and when we're whooshing back and forth across the yard, I guess it's pretty hard to tell us apart. Someone asked Mom, "Where's Mary-Margaret?". Mom replied "There she is. Uh...NO...THERE she is. Oh dear...no...THERE she is!" Dolly and I thought it was pretty funny. Actually, there's another difference. Again, it's in the ears. Both of Dolly's still haven't come up yet, while mine stick straight up like little antennae. But when we're nothing more than a blur, it's not actually very obvious.

Me and my mom got along really well yesterday for the whole day. I'm getting the "out" thing down almost perfectly, and I make a little "wrrrrrrr?" while I stand by the door if I'm absolutely serious. Being a teenager isn't all that easy, but I'm really trying.

Gotta get ready for work. Don't want to be late. Have a great day, everybody!

Love, Mary-Margaret

Zen Parrotism

I can't help myself. I just keep trying new things. This picture is of me sitting on Mom's shoulder while she's reading her email. First, I jump on her lap, then I start climbing. I probably coulda sat on her head if she hadn't lifted me off. Parrots do this all the time. I don't see why I can't.

Mom took me to see Dr. V again. I abso-bloomin'-LUTELY love that place. Dr. V told Mom that I was fine. Maybe I was just being a wild and crazy teenager and not to worry. Then she gave Mom a long talk about puppy behavior. Mom felt kind of embarrassed that she worries about me so much and asked Dr. V what she thought. Dr. V told Mom, very tactfully, that if I ever were to get sick that she's sure my mom would have me there within the hour. Mom sort of laughed that funny little laugh (you know, like she does when she's feeling uncomfortable?). She asked Dr. V "Is that your nice way of telling me that I'm an over-protective mother?". And Dr V kinda said "Well...yes". They were talking something about "crate", too. Mom asked what size to get. Should I worry?

They also talked about when I should get an operation. I don't want to know about that, though. Mom told Dr. V how I got so hysterical about being left at Miss Patty's place. Instead of sticking up for ME, Mary-Margaret O'Brien, Dr. V thought Mom should leave me alone at home for a bit. Or even all day. I don't know if I could make it more than an hour or two. I mean, like ....uh....we've never been apart long except for last Friday, and you KNOW how that upset me. And I got weighed. 5.2 pounds now. That's a big FIVE POINT TWO. Yee haw!!!

Back to MY day now. So, to make up for it all, I was just the perfect pup today. Except for throwing my kibbles into the air and letting them rain down all over the reception room and my office, I did everything I was supposed to. And that includes the "out" thing. Oh...ok, I did run into the Allstate Insurance office twice, but those ladies are really fun. Especially the one with the dancing frog on her desk.

Time for me to get some sleep.

G'night and God Bless ...

Mary-Margaret

Mom says I'm acting like a teenager!

I have an appointment with the doctor tomorrow. Mom says she doesn't know what to do with me. She says I'm just not myself. Well, gee! All I did was grab her arm and try to dance with it? Big deal! And, well ok...if I'm going to be honest here...I guess I have been seeing how much I could get away with. Like, I do have "piddle pads", but sometimes it's just more fun to watch Mom clean up a wet spot than to trudge all the way into the bathroom. Then she chases me saying "You get over here, Miss Mary-Margaret", and I keep running and dodging her. Which I think is great, except now she just growls at me.

I'm not sure she meant it, but Debi who works with us said she wanted to take me home with her so I could play with Star, her Maltese. Mom said "Go right ahead!". I mean, do you think Mom would really let me go? Now I'm just a bit concerned, and I've tried to be good all afternoon. Reaaaaaaally, I have.

I'll let you know about the doctor tomorrow. It's not a bad thing to go there. I DO love all the doctors at Pet Medical Center in Temecula. They give great cuddles and kisses.

Love, Mary-Margaret

PS - I have all grown up teeth in the front now. And they're white and straight. I'm going to practice smiling now!

Sprinklers are MOST Fascinating!

We have "rain birds" in the back yard. I can't figure out how they always know where I'm going to be. I sneak up on them from behind and then rush around before they see me. Always ALWAYS they catch me before I catch them. Ever since that time I got nailed by a "pop-up" sprinkler, I've been on a quest to prevail.

Here, Mom took a picture of me after my "Close Encounter of the Wet Kind" tonight. I'm racing all over the house just playing tag with myself and shaking water off and she hollered, "Mary-Margaret, Look at Mom!". I knew there was a camera right there. I've learned about that tone in her voice. Anyway, see my kind of damp and stringy hair? You wouldn't want YOUR picture taken looking like that either, would you?

Going to sit in front of heater and dry off now. Then we have to watch "The Bachelor - Paris". It's getting to the part where all the ladies talk about their "real feelings" and "open up", whatever that means. Personally, I think it's easier to "arf" when you feel like it. And if one of those mean, nasty girls treated me like they do Moana and Susan, I'd probably nip their ankles or something worse. My life is so uncomplicated. Sometimes, I think Mom is a little jealous of me. :o)

Love, Mary-Margaret

My TV and Lounge Place

This is what I do on a rainy Sunday afternoon. Or at least, it's what I do until we have to go to work. Mom puts on the "Animal Planet" station and I either stand, sit or lay down and watch. You'll also notice that it's just a short hop to the coffee table which is handy when someone leaves something yummy there, although I really get into big trouble when I upset a full cup of hot coffee. Sheesh!

Then Mom calls "Mary-Margaret, it's time to go to work!" and I hop off, lickety-split, because I don't want to be late.

I'll write more later.

Love, Mary-Margaret O'Brien
Official Greeter and Investigator-in-Training

Puppy School Cancelled because of Weather

That about says it all. It's one of those days. In trouble for shoes, slippers, and overturning wastebaskets. Entertained myself for a short time watching "Animal Planet's Funniest Animals" but quit when they started re-runs. Was SOOOOO looking forward to seeing my friends. This is the most crushing blow of all. I think I'll nap.

PS - What I said about slippers?

This is me after getting in trouble for (1) opening Mom's closet and removing slipper, and (2) emptying waste basket in bathroom. I WAS hiding behind toilet, but that got a bit lonesome. Especially after Mom closed the door and held me prisoner in her bathroom for maybe a whole two minutes.

This is me, giving her a "glad to see you and sorry about the wastebasket" look. It's not a bad pic of me, and you can even see my pink bow under my left ear.

We are going to work today to finish up some reports. I'll really TRY to behave myself! Really!

Seven new teeth - one to go!

Sarabi (my pen pal from Illinois) asked about my baby teeth. I have one majorly loose one on the top and it's just about ready to fall out. I'm really lucky. All my teeth (so far) have come in straight so Mom doesn't have to put braces on them. Ewww. Just the thought of braces makes me cringe.

Anyway, I haven't gotton any more money from the Tooth Fairy yet. Mom says that she's probably waiting until I buy my Piggy Bank. Now, that is an Oxymoron if I've ever heard one. I need money to buy a bank, but I can't get money until I have a bank. But I can't get a bank until I have money. Go figure Tooth Fairies and their logic. Like I said before, I'm perfectly happy with liver snaps, called "Charley Bears" from Trader Joe's.

Admonishment of the day: NO MORE SHOES. That's what Mom keeps telling me. She speaks very slowly and in a pretty loud voice so I'm sure she means it. Oh, heck. What's a slipper or two? I mean, I love shoes only second to envelopes.

It's raining really hard right now. I wonder if we'll still have Puppy School?

Love, Mary-Margaret

Fine. Go Ahead and Snap Away!

This is the last one I'm letting you take. I'm tired, exhausted, and emotionally drained. I have NEVER been away from my mom for more than a couple of hours, and even then, it was only because she stepped on my toe and the Doctor had to x-ray it and put a cast on.

This "Miss Patty" thing is NOT going to happen again. I will absolutely insist on being the first one in the tub, and the first one dried. And then they can call my mom and ask her to pick me up.
I am not a CAGE animal. I have feelings. :o(

Are you Happy NOWWWWW???

Fine. OK. I'm looking right at the camera. But I will NOT smile. Go away and leave me alone to wallow in self-pity.

Nyah! 

Some People Don't Listen

I will NOT smile. You can't make me. So what if everybody wants a picture. I'm still miffed at my mom for leaving me all that time. 

I said "DO NOT TAKE MY PICTURE"

I will scrunch up my face and squeeze my eyes shut if you keep this up with the camera stuff. I had a really rotten day.

OK. Truth is, I really missed my mom. She dropped me off at Miss Patty's at 8:30AM and said she'd be back. Well, I didn't think that meant EIGHT HOURS LATER!! I was a wreck. I'd been crying all afternoon. When I saw her I practically went into convulsions, sobbing all over until I couldn't even catch my breath. I wouldn't let Mom even go into the post office unless she took me with her.