Mundane Monday!?

You'd think people would be taking time off during the Christmas-New Year's week, but NOOOOOOOOOOOOO! Nope. We're as busy as ever. My job is to meet and greet clients all day long. I walk over to the door and say "Wuff...wuff...wrrrrrf?" (means "Hello, I'm Mary-Margaret. How may I help you?)

Debbie-across-the-hall had clients with kids, so naturally I greeted them, too. Debbie has a toy box that comes out when her clients bring children and I do EVERLY so love to see what's inside. I'm very polite, and I don't grab or growl. I wait until the kids come to me and then I kiss their hands. That gives me an idea of what they had for lunch, and if there are any left overs in their pockets that I might be interested in.

Later on, my very good friend Jami came in with her dad. We sniffed and played for a bit before she had to hit the road again.

Lots of phone calls, people, mail....everything. I hope it's this busy today. Oh, and I hope Jennifer is feeling better. She came in yesterday with that head cold that's been going around. Mom suggested she go home about noon and get better. It's no fun to work when you're sick...not that I ever have to, but still....I wouldn't like to if I was.

Have a great week. And Happy New Year if I don't talk to you before Thursday.

Love, Mary-Margaret

Over the Freeway and through the Roads...

....to Grandpapa's house we gooooooo!!

Yup. Today we took my Grandpa his pressie and we went to lunch, and up to the Palisades where my mom grew up, and drove around. Oh Gosh! It was such a bee-yoo-tee-full day. I saw the whole Pacific ocean, and the sail boats and the big tankers. I bet I could see ALL THE WAY TO RUSSIA. (Just kidding, Ms. Palin!) I tell you, I really could see all the way to CATALINA, though.

Here's a picture of my Grandpa in his new sweater vest from MEEE (and Mom), and his new shirt from Greg (for his birthday). He sure looks handsome, doesn't he?



I think Mom surprised herself that she remembered how to get around in them thar parts. She just shut her brain off and let automatic pilot take over, and she was fine.

Love and Happy End of the Year...

Mary-Margaret

Uncle Rudy's House

Christmas Day - We went to Uncle Rudy's house for dinner. Auntie C made a roast, with all kinds of goodies. And before that there was a "crood-it-ay" platter with veggies and dip, and crackers and cheese. Mom was getting light headed from hunger. The traffic was pretty jammed up and about half-way into the drive when, technically we should have already been at Uncle Rudy's, we weren't even close. Mom was grumbling about wishing she'd made a sandwich to take with her. Next time.....?

Anyhow...we passed out pressies and opened ours. I got my absolutely everly most favorite PINK hoodie with a drawstring waist. OK OK...yeah, I know....but when it's pulled in tight I LOOK like I have a waist.



Me and Uncle Rudy spent some good quality time just hangin' and nappin' and enjoying each other's company.

Oh, I do soooooooo love Christmas.

Love,

Mary-Margaret

PS - Tonight we celebrated with an intimate dinner for two. No candles, but we had filet mignon. I LOVE filet mignon. I had seconds, thirds, AND fourths. YUMMY!!!

My Favorite Things - Christmas 2008

1) Waking up and being surprised. I smell Cinnamon rolls in the oven. Yum! I love Cinnamon rolls.



2) Opening pressies - My Auntie Leslie sent me a DVD of "Puppy Love" (thank you..thank you!!). Most of our DVDs are for me, except one werewolf one, and I think that's for me too, but Mom covers my eyes. Why she got it? Our favorite waiter at the Enterprise Fish House stars in it. He's a really good waiter and a very good werewolf, too. His name is "Michael Dionne" and the movie is called "Werewolf - The Devil's Hound". See why I like the movie?


3) Ahhhhhhhh! Nothing like sitting in front of the little fan-heater we have in our home office. I get as close as I can without frying my whiskers, and just let the warm breeze waft over me. This is heaven.

Yup. I had a really great Christmas. I hope you all have one, too!

Love,

Mary-Margaret

An Interview with God!

Me and God....we talk together all the time. God....Dog....one of these days people will figure it out. Us pups are just a reflection of the good Lord, and we act as his messengers on a regular basis. That's our job, you know. Anyway....somebody must have figured it out because we got sent this rather insightful video (we don't know who made it but they are to be congratulated!!) and we want to share it with you.

Please click on the link Interview with God and take a deep breath, relax, and enjoy. This is how God and me, Mary-Margaret, talk when we get together. Maybe if humans did the same thing a lot more understanding and love would fix some of the troubles you guys have?

Love and peace be with you...

Mary-Margaret

Happy Holly Days!!

We really DO wish you all a Happy Holiday season.

To the folks who sent us cards, we got them and we love them. To those who didn't send cards, we think that's fine, too. We have FOUR boxes sitting on our desk and no time to address them. Too bad they don't make "After-Christmas Cards" for people who are....shall we say...."chronologically challenged"...to send in response to people who are organized and thoughtful enough to actually sit down and write them out.

Our hearts are in the right places but the Good Lord only gave us four paws, two hands and twenty-four hours a day. We love each and every one of you. Your pictures are fabulous. Your poems and your cyber-cards are touching. We thank you for your friendship and your love.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to you all.......

Love, hugs and may your stockings be filled with duck jerky and yummy treats!!

Mary-Margaret O'Brien

Winter is HERE!

Finally I get to wear my winter clothes. My sweaters, my Christmas t-shirts. Today I wore my black and white hound's tooth coat with the red quilted lining. Lots of people said I looked really nice, too. Very professional. Yup.

It's been everly so busy lately. Today I got so many belly rubs in exchange for making people smile. Amazing how little it takes to make some folks happy. They come in all determined and sometimes mad or sad because they have to take someone to court. It's my job to take the stress away and I'm very good at that.

One couple came in with a baby that was old enough to stand but not old enough to make words. His name was Jesus (pronounced Hay-Seuss) and we just played and played. I tried to take him to see my toy box, too. I was pretty excited about him being there but Mom asked Jennifer to babysit me for a while because she was afraid I might accidently poke him with one of my teeth. Hey. I'm very careful with people puppies. I even asked Mom if we could keep him, please? His mom and dad just laughed and said "No, that's ok!". Too bad. I would've like to have a boy of my own.

Tonight, just for fun, I ran out into the rain and told all my cat friends that I was home and going to bed pretty soon. I wasn't wearing ANY clothes at all, and I got wet and cold and raced around a couple of times. Then I ran in the house, up the stairs and hopped onto the bed. (hehehehehe) That's a good place to dry off if your mom doesn't catch you. "Wet feet!!!", she squeals and I hop right off. My kennel is lined with a sherpa pad, so I don't mind. I'm there now dictating to my secretary. The point is to get most of the water off your feet BEFORE you hop into your kennel so you'll be toasty and dry.

That's all for now.

Love ya...

Mary-Margaret

Maybe snow for Temecula??!

Mom says the weather forecast for Temecula says "Rain showers this evening changing to mixed rain and snow overnight. Low 38F." Snow? It's happened before, but usually not enough to stick to anything except my sweater.

My very good friend, MaryElizabeth, from the Yorkshire Terrier National Rescue, sent us this really pretty e-card for Christmas. Click on the link and follow all of the directions. We think you'll like it, too. It was made by the folks at Ashland University in Tennessee.

Silent Night

Only ELEVEN more days until SANTA gets here. Woo hoo!! I guess we'd better get our packages mailed, huh??

Love,

Mary-Margaret

Licenses, Registrations and Bonds (Oh, MY!)

If you're a Private Investigator in the State of California, you absolutely MUST be licensed by the Bureau of Security and Investigative Services (BSIS). Some of the things that require a license are skip tracing, providing reports on the habits, where-a-bouts, assets and other personal stuff about another person, including "cheating spouses". If someone is advertising that they are a Private Investigator, or that they perform any of the services that require a license, then they also have to list their Private Investigator license number. Anybody can write their own reviews and make it seem like they're really "great", "fantastic", "wonderful", (blah blah blah) at what they do. Before you give them any money, check them out at Bureau of Security and Investigative Services.

Also, professional Process Servers in the State of California have to be Registered in the county where they work from primarily. The County Clerk is the place to check to make sure your Process Server is properly registered. Registrations have to be renewed either on or before the date they're due. If that doesn't happen, the Process Server has to start all over again with the bond and registration (etc), AND if they pass the Department of Justice and FBI checks, they'll get a new number. There isn't any place to check them on-line, so call either the County Clerk's office or the Sheriff-Court Services in the county you are concerned about. Or make them show you a valid, current PERMANENT identification card.

You'll also want to check out any Contractors, Accountants, and Attorneys, too.

Take care and be aware! It's a crazy world out there. If you want to send me an email, get our license numbers, or look at my website, go to RASCAL. We're here to help you.

Love,

Mary-Margaret "Watch Dog" O'Brien

PS (again) - Go to Mary-Margaret's Diary if you want to read more about my life.
"temecula investigator" "temecula private investigator" "temecula process server" "process server temecula" "murrieta investigator" "murrieta private investigator" "murrieta process server" "process server murrieta""RASCAL" "Rancho Attorney Service" "RASCAL's Research & Location" "Riverside registered process server" "temecula licensed investigator" "murrieta licensed investigator" "registered process server" "california process server""temecula attorney service" "murrieta attorney service"

Temecula Process Server, Murrieta Process Server

Did I mention that we serve process in Temecula and Murrieta?? Yup. And we do private investigations, too. We've had this business since 1977, way before I was born. And why, you ask, am I writing this in MY diary? Hmmmmmmm?

The reason is....(ahem!!)...I WORK here and I've been working since I was nine weeks old. Mom's doing an experiment with internet search engines, and she wanted to see how many hits MY DIARY would get if the right words were put in. You know....whatever gets picked up by those "space spiders". Huh? Oh...sorry! Mom says they're called "web crawlers".

So many people who are out of work during this "depression" are setting up shop as process servers, and working out of their car or a mail drop because they THINK it's pretty easy and makes a lot of money. Oh Dog, if you only knew what's really involved and how much responsibility a really good process server has to their clients, you'd think twice before doing this.

Just the other day we served a paper for one of our Arizona clients and me and Rocco (a miniature pinscher) really got into a barking match. I tell YOUUUUU...he was no gentleman. His dad picked him up and apologized to MEEEEEEEEEEEEE for Rocco's behavior. The nerve, I say. And Rocco was only half my size, too.

You can tell from the process you serve what the economy is like. Last month, lots of people filed small claims papers and paid by credit card. This month, they're being very careful with their money so we try to work with them, and maybe they won't have to spend so much with us as they do with the folks who have their office on the internet only, and not in a real office building. A bunch of clients told us they don't like delivering their papers to the "server" without meeting them, and they don't want to meet them in a parking lot or a street corner.

A couple of days ago we got a job from a couple who used one of these process servers. They gave him their money and now he won't call them back or even tell them if their papers were served or not. So they have to pay again to have someone else serve it.

I sure hope the country gets better really soon. This is very sad for people AND for pups. Some families are losing their homes and they have to put their pup up for adoption because they don't have any place for him. That's really a bummer, dontcha think?

We are here to SERVE you! (hee hee...couldn't resist that one!)

If you need anybody found so you can have them served, or if you want us to serve someone for you anywhere, locally or nationally, just click on the link at the top of this page and you'll go right to our business page with all the necessary infomation. If we think someone else could do the job better, we'll tell you and even give you some phone numbers to call. Yup! We will!

Love,

Mary-Margaret

PS (again) - Go to Mary-Margaret's Diary if you want to read more about my life. MMOB
"temecula process server" "murrieta process server" "wildomar process server" "winchester process server" "process server temecula" "process server murrieta" "process server wildomar" "process server winchester" "riverside process server" "process server riverside" "registered process server" "riverside county process" "fallbrook process server" "process server fallbrook" "lake elsinore process server" "process server lake elsinore" "temecula attorney service" "murrieta attorney service"

"Have you seen my glasses?"

My mom put her glasses someplace and she can't remember where. She keeps looking all over the usual places, but nope! They're not there. Then she starts all over again...the bathroom, the car, the bedroom. Even in MY private places which is where she sometimes finds things, but to be honest? I'm not into glasses! Shoes, dirty laundry....that's my thing!

She went to work all day yesterday without them. Now that she has two sorta good eyes, she uses one for far away and the other for close (but not REAL close). All day long she looked like she was winking at her clients.

This morning, like maybe they'll magically appear, she starts hunting all over again. Right while I'm watching "Good Morning America" she interrupts me and says, "Have YOU seen my glasses?". As if..........???



BTW....GMA had a really hairy brownish kid and a bald kid that only had blonde hair on it's head playing together and even kissing. I thought that seemed pretty normal until "The Momster" pointed out to me that the hairy kid was actually an orangutan. You learn something new every day on GMA. Kids of all species always play well together when they're little. It's the grown ups who teach us not to get along.

Philosophically yours....

Mary-Margaret

Santa Claus is Coming to Town!

Every year about this time, Santa comes by the house and leaves something nice for me. Unless I tell him exactly what I want, he has to guess. This year I wasn't taking ANY chances. When I talked to my Uncle Rudy about my plans he wanted to come to PETCO, too. That's where Santa was going to be so us pups could give him our Christmas lists. I loaned Rudy my Santa hat from a couple of years ago, put on my new poinsettia collar and "Santa's Little Helper" t-shirt on and off we went.

When we got there we found a sign saying "Santa's feeding his reindeer!". We waited and waited, and pretty soon another kid, "Max" (a small beige and white short haired terrier), got in line. We all got to sniffing each other's butts and playing a little bit. Then Max did the absolutely most everly rudest thing: He pooped right on the floor in front of Santa's chair. OHMYGAWSH...Me and Rudy both ducked behind our mom's legs. Someone was gonna get in trouble and it wasn't us. Max's mom was pretty embarrassed and she went to go find a plastic bag to pop the poop into. Good thing for Max that Santa didn't catch him, and Max's mom got it cleaned up before Santa came back from feeding his reindeer.

I sat on Santa's right knee and Uncle Rudy sat on his left. Both Mom and Auntie C kept saying "cheese", "Kitty", "Chicken", and squeaking some silly looking red stuffie, while doing anything else they could think of to make us smile. We were thinking, for Lord's sake. This has NOTHING to do with them. It's between US and SANTA. The "elf" lady took a bunch of pictures until she got one that both our moms agreed on. All that fuss. If they'd just kept quiet, me and Rudy would have gone through our Christmas lists much faster.

Next time, I vote for leaving our moms in the car or for sending them shopping. Straight and to the point is how I deliver my wish list. And, in case you're wondering what I want, it's a secret. One hint, though. Think "edible".

Merry Christmas, everydoggie!!

Love, Mary-Margaret

The Momster is home!

She's HOME! She's HOME!! Wow. I was beside myself with joy when she got home. The huge eye patch didn't stop ME one bit from covering her with kisses and love. She went to bed for a bit and did some catch up snoozing. Instead of curling up on MY side of the bed, I wrapped myself around her head, and kissed her ever so gently while letting her doze off. She woke up with MEEEE as a furry little pillow. She says I'm the most loving, most giving "pupperkins" ever.

Mom asked me to thank you all for your love and prayers. She will get the patch off tomorrow and she's confident that she'll be able to see clearly once more. She's in absolutely no pain, and not itchy-scratchy at all. If you're ever at Kaiser in Riverside and need an IV put in, ask for "Danny". He's amazing. He finds veins where others have failed, Mom says.

Which reminds me...did you ever hear the one about the red corpuscle and the white corpuscle? (hee hee)

"They loved in VEIN!!" (yuck yuck yuck giggle snort!!)

Mary-Margaret "Nurse" O'Brien

Messin' around!

Saturday...long weekend. We did nothing today. Mom fixed a wiggly toilet seat and I practiced the art of napping. We watched movies and the TV picture went out for a bit, so we reset it. Lots of things can be fixed by unplugging them for a bit. Like telephones, computers, televisions.....lots of stuff.

Tomorrow we go to work at the office. We get more done on one Sunday than we do in five weekdays. Strewth, it is. I'm learning Australian thanks to the Bottle Tree.

Next week my mom gets a new eye and my Uncle Michael travels to Kharagpur, West Bengal. We are sending our prayers that he stays safe and sound. That's like half-way between Mumbai and Thailand.

G'day...

Mary-Margaret

"Armageddon" over Thanksgiving dinner!!

(parden the pun...I couldn't help it!)

Arrrrrrrrrrrghhhh....! I think the turkey won this match. Ohhhhhhhhh, [urp!] I had the most everly best Thanksgiving Day. It's the day after now. Ugh! Here's how it went:

10:00AM - left for Grandpapa's
12:00PM - arrived and got fed lunch of chopped chicken leg
2:30PM - left for Aunt Janet & Uncle Michael's house
3:10PM - found hor's d'oeurves tray - cheese is very good to snack on; I discover yummy tidbits that drop on rug and Janet comments that I'm like a furry vacuum cleaner.
3:30PM - discovered that sometimes things that are pretty tasty fall onto the kitchen floor by accident; I help Aunt Janet keep floor clean.
5:00PM - I follow fambly into dining room and get comfy under the table. I'm not disappointed there, either.
6:00PM - following fambly back into kitchen, I continue to be on crumb watch, and I am rewarded with my own plate of turkey, followed by seconds and thirds. Cousin Peter is very perceptive and understanding of my love of the holiday celebration. I go "O-U-T" a couple of times, and check the perimeter of the back yard
6:30PM - I stretch out and nap - did you know a lot of turkey makes you sleepy?
9:00PM - I finally get Mom off the couch by sitting on her chest and "talking", convincing her it's bed time
3:00AM - I wake Mom up to take me to use the "facilities" and then we go back to bed.
6:30AM - Uh oh....I think the turkey wants a re-match. I wake Mom up and barely make it to the bathroom before the turkey reappears the same way it went in. Fortunately, it's easily removed from the berber carpet of the guest room, and I barf up the rest on my piddle pad. I am embarrassed and ashamed, but everyone is very kind to me, and Aunt Janet says most everything comes out of the berber carpet and not to worry.

The rest of the morning I am recovering from Turkey Day, and catching up on my napping. We get to GrandPapa's about 10:30AM on Friday and he offers me more chicken. Mom notices I'm still a bit green around the gills, so I don't accept his hospitality until 12:15PM.

Yorkies have an excellent capacity for recovery, especially when it comes to chicken.

Hope you all had a great day!!

Love, Mary-Margaret

In the Jungle.....!

My VERY good friends, Dexter, DeeDee and Demi's mom sent this over. It's not often you see a wild Yorkie running in their natural habitat.



Alas...alack. How we long for the good old days before we became domesticated.

Enjoy your holiday. We wish you a "Happy Turkey Day!"

Love, Mary-Margaret "Wild Dog" O'Brien

Happy Anniversary to us!!

Today, November 25, 2008, is me and my mom's THIRD anniversary. It was November 25, 2005 that we first met, fell in love and adopted each other. Here's some pix of my first year.

Here's me my first night at home. Silly Mom thought that the "piddle pad" would solve every imaginable probable mess. Oh, how naive she was back then.



And here's me staking a claim on the "big comfy leather chair". I hadn't figured out yet how to get on the high back, but that didn't stop me from trying. I also learned very quickly how to dig my fingerettes into the leather to keep from flying off when Mom plopped herself into my chair. A flying squirrel I am not!



My very first Christmas. Wow...what a concept. I LOVE Christmas!



Me and some of my friends at Puppy School. This is where we all learned to get along with each other. Some of those lessons still stick with me after all this time, too. I sure do miss going to school.



Here I am, one year old. I've learned a whole lot in my first year, including an appreciation of fashion and design. See??

Time sure flies when you're having fun. I'm everly so fortunate to have been adopted by someone who is also my very best friend. My life is excellent, and my prayers are that all the pups in the whole world will be adopted and loved as much as I am.

Happy Anniversary, Mom!!

Love, Mary-Margaret

The Incredible Shrinking Tree

A few years ago, before I was adopted, Mom found a nursery that was going out of business. She bought three beautiful trees - a flowering pear, a bottle tree, and ...something deciduous but we cant remember what it's called. Two of the trees were in 15 gallon containers, and the bottle tree was in a wood box, maybe a 20-25 gallon crate? She also bought some shrubs for our slope, and two really pretty bushes for the back planter. Everything is doing really well and nothing died. Except our "Benjamin Button" tree is growing backwards.

The one tree called a bottle tree never gets any bigger. Nope. It just gets shorter. She goes out and looks at it and goes "Tsk tsk!", and wonders how a tree can get smaller instead of bigger. The base of the trunk is bigger, and it keeps getting new leaves on the top, but it never grows.


(See? Short tree, fat trunk! Click on the picture and you'll see!)

The owner of the nursery is one of our clients and he came in last week. When we told him about our shrinking tree, he said he would come look at it. "Yup!", he said. "It's getting smaller!". Mom had nightmares of a herd of gophers living underneath it and taking bites out of the root system, but Pat (the nursery man) said, "No, that's not it!". She told him that she had visions of it slowly sinking into the ground like one of Elmer Fudd's carrots, but Pat said "Nope. That's not it, either!".

He came to the house the other day and put something called "gypsum" on it, and put a lot of fertilizer on it, too. If you ask MEEEE, it doesn't look any different, and I told him so. "Wait until after spring", he said. "Maybe you'll see a difference then."

Gosh, I hope so. I never heard of a tree getting smaller before. Mom said she had two other trees there and both of them died. I guess a shrinking tree is better than a dead tree, huh?

Optimistically yours,

Mary-Margaret

Getting Ready for Turkey Day!!

Oh yum. I think I like roast turkey even better than duck or chicken. Mmm- mmmm-- MMMMMM!! Yup. That is my everly most favorite day, too. The one day that I can have TURKEY TURKEY TURKEY. Forget the cranberry and green bean casserole. It's the turkey I go for.



This year, I was really lucky to get a spa appointment before Thanksgiving. Mom asked Miss Marilyn to trim a little extra on my upper lip. Last time when I got picked up, Mom was giggling about me looking like I had a Groucho Marx mustache. This time, you can actually see my lips. They're not pink like the humans have.

My lips are black, and so are the palms of my hands and bottoms of my feet, and my nose. Black black black. I wonder why that is? I mean, think about it. My tummy is pink and my skin (under my fur) is pink. How come not everything? Doesn't make much sense. In humans, no matter what color their skin is, their hands and feet and inside their nose and ears is all pink, pink, pink. Hmmmmmmmm. Oh and I got a double bow - rust and orange - for Thanksgiving. Took me all of maybe 60 seconds to get it out. Usually it takes me a week or so. Must be the doubleness that makes it easier?

Mom says I ask too many questions. Well, how ELSE is a pup to learn, huh? My GrandPapa is EIGHTY-EIGHT years old and he still asks questions. He's very interested in how the universe got started, and he's watching to see how the experiment in the Alps goes. My Dogness, imagine twelve miles of PROTON ACCELERATOR (click on link to see about it!). Whoop-ti-doo!. And if that's not enough for those humans, they're going to smash them together with some "particles" going the other way. BIG BANG!! Maybe next spring, huh? They had a fews months delay because of some little problem. The Pakistanis are worried about it exploding the world. I'm worried about it spilling my water dish.

The picture above is of me at the stop light telling Mom to give it up with the camera, and I do not like "papparazza", thenkyewveddymuch!!

Have a great holiday!

Love, Mary-Margaret

Birthdays, Birthdays, EVERYWHERE!!

First it was my Uncle Michael on 11/1, then my mom on 11/15, now it's my GrandPapa's TODAY! Woo hoo....and on 11/23, it'll be my brother-in-law Joel.

We bought THREE Hallmark cards for sending out and there was a reward. Yup. Von's told Mom that because we bought THREE cards, I could have MY CHOICE of TEDDY BEARS. See the one I picked?



Here's me and my new baby saying "Hello" to people from our car seat. Isn't my baby just bee-yoo-ti-full? I just call it "Baby" like I do for my other Stuffies. That way I don't mess up and call it by the wrong name. Everybody in my toy box answers to "Baby".

Happy Birthday, GrandPapa. That's a lot of dog years, I tell ya. But stay positive. My Aunt Rose was 14 1/2 dog years when she left for the bridge. Thats....uh....um....oh, hang on..let me get the calculator....(clickity...tappity...punch)...101.5 years old. Wow!!!

Love,

Mary-Margaret O'Brien

Happy Birthday to Mom!

Wow...what a day. Everybody called to give her good wishes, even people she hadn't talked to in a while. That was nice. Then we went to work for a bit and Robert (my main crush) was there in his yellow hard hat, and he took some time to give me belly rubs. Mom took a couple of pictures, too.



Then, Uncle Rudy and the twins, and Uncle Jason and Auntie C came over and took Mom out to a late lunch/early dinner. Whatever it was, she didn't bring anything home for me AND..(ahem)..she says she may never eat again, or at least not for a while.
They all went to RJ's Sizzlin' Steer. As usual the food was great (I hear), except they discontinued the Apple Dumplings which upset both Mom and Auntie C a bit. They've put in a request to reinstate the dumplings.

Me and Uncle Rudy had the run of the house AND backyard. We get along everly so well. Uncle Rudy looks bigger than me, but he's just got more hair. I think I weigh more than him. Oh, who cares. We love each other no matter what and that's what counts, right?




A very good day, I must say. Cailin and Clancy took my bubble wrap but I don't mind. I get tired of popping it anyhow after a while. The bubble wrap made absolutely certain that Auntie Sissy's Cinnamon Plum jam didn't break, and that the really nifty London Christmas ornaments and the pictures of Cade and Carter that she sent for Mom's birthday didn't break. All the way from Minnesota and everything arrived in perfect condition. I think I might have some Plum jam, if it's ok with my mom. She's thinking about it, but she reminded me that plums are just fruit that hasn't become prunes yet....whatever THAT means. I'll let you know more later.

Love and kisses....

Mary-Margaret O'Brien

Par-taaaaaaaaaaay!

We got to work, unlocked the door and THERE WAS CAKE!! Wow....CAKE, and presents and a card. I was everly so excited I could hardly contain myself. And then....(sigh)...I found out they weren't for me.

A little later a really BIG BIG box got delivered by my most favorite FedEx man. I raced up to it, stood on my tippy-toes, and tried to read the label. It was suggested that I step back just a bit; that it wasn't for me. (deeper sigh) It was a replacement copier for the one that fritzed out on us, and by the way, the new one doesn't work right either. Next time, we'll buy a Canon. (but I digress....!)

Finally, at last, Cheryl got back from the court, and we had a client there, and it was time to open the presents and ...ta daaaaa...eat cake. Everybody sang "Happy Birthday", even me. I was hopping up and down, "talking" (as I do) and when it got to the name I almost said "Mary-Margaret", but I was polite enough to wait just a second and good thing, too. Turns out it's for Mom, so I said her name (in my own language), and just kept on singing.

"I don't CARE if it's chocolate and I can't have it, I WANT it", I said. The grown-ups decided on a compromise. I got beef jerky with vanilla frosting. Not bad. Don't knock it if you haven't tried it, ok? I do love Birthday parties so very much.
I asked very nicely for seconds and was turned down flat. So I pouted some.

Then, I got my kibble dish and dragged it into the reception area and flipped it over. Mom said the floor looked like a herd of wild rabbits had left their calling cards.

Next, I saw some little pieces of paper sticking out of our client's shorts. His name is Patrick. Anyway, couldn't have been all that important (I figured) if they're sticking out so I plucked one out and he didn't even notice. I could have been great as a pick-pocket, huh? So I sucked on the paper for a bit and got it sort of soggy, then I shredded it into some pretty tiny pieces just to entertain myself.
Hey....if I don't know what a lottery ticket is, how do I know I'm not supposed to do that, huh? He and Mom picked up the tiny, soggy pieces and put them into a little pile, and Patrick put them back in his pocket. Just in case his numbers are called, at least he can maybe tape them back together? I hope?

So that was my day. Ah....yes. And I went to get the mail WITH NO LEASH again, AND got to go to the planter and piddle without a leash, and when I was done, I hopped right back on the stairs to go to the elevator. Yup. I know how to behave. Mom says she's really proud of me. I like feeling like I've made her happy. She tells everyone how good I am, and it makes me blush. Yup. It does.

G'night for now. Tomorrow is Mom's birthday and I want to make sure that she has a good day. My cousins are coming over to take her to lunch. No, I probably can't go, but I bet my Uncle Rudy will come play with me while they're gone.

Love, Mary-Margaret

I'm not a BABY anymore!!

OH OH OH....Big surprise for me. Sort of a "coming of age", if you will? Wow....it's like when humans get their driver's license, or they can vote. TODAY...November 13, 2008....(ahem ahem?).....I got to ride down the elevator AND go get the mail with Mom with NO LEASH on. Yup.

If she stopped, I stopped. If she said "go", I did. I am really full of myself right now. Who knew? Me....all grown up. I tell ya....I'm jazzed. I feel so honored that I am finally trusted to behave myself and not run off. You could tell I was really pleased. Yup. I'm not a puppy any more.

Love,

Mary-Margaret

PS - Golly gee, this guy would sure make a good "big brother" for me. Also, being that he's African of descent, he'd be a great pup for the Obama girls, dont'cha think? He's an African Boerboel named "Otis". I found him on the African Boerbel site and was immediately impressed. He could be "Otis Boerboel Obama" if they adopted him. I never heard of an African Boerbel until today, but aren't they kewl??

A Letter from Auntie Allie

Dear MM,

I thought you would like to see a photo of my son's rescue dog, Fiona. Fiona is about 1 1/2 years old and was lost for awhile in a big city. The Humane Society could not find her family, and at about the same time, my son was there looking for a dog to adopt. He fell in love with the beautiful Fiona so in a couple of days he returned to pick her up. He brought her home to a nice big house and huge yard that's all fenced with a doghouse and new toys waiting for her there. Soon, he found out that Fiona had heartworms and had to take medicine for several weeks and be kept quiet. So she got to come inside quite a bit and just relax with the humans while she wasn't supposed to be running a lot and chasing her favorite toy, the tennis ball you see in the photo. She is now much better and weighs about 60 lbs. She loves her brave soldier and his wife.

When joking about being in the Army for so long, my son once answered someone who asked "what do you miss about civilian life?" He said, "oh, I just miss my hair, and my dog" He had a dog similar to Fiona, whose name was Max. Max went to the rainbow bridge several years ago. I'm sure he's happy that "his boy" who has been dogless for over 13 years, now has another fine shepherd. Proving that even highly trained soldiers, whom some think of as being "hard", still have a big soft spot for their precious dogs.

You might remember that I have told you about my Fiona who was an exceptional Scottie. She's also at the rainbow bridge, and always in my heart. My son loved our Fiona so much that when I called him to tell him she had passed, I just said "hello" and he said "Fiona. Fiona is gone, isn't she?" He was half a world away but I guess she must have paused on her way to the rainbow bridge to touch him one more time. When he told me about getting a new dog, I was happy for him. Then he said, "Guess what I named her?" I had no idea, really. When he said "Fiona", I was just astounded.

Love,
Auntie Allie in Kona

My new friend, Lolly

"There ain't no bugs on me....". I take Sentinel tabs once a month. They're little and brown and taste like absolute heaven to me. Doctor says they taste like liver. Well, if that's true, I sure wouldn't mind having some liver someday. Mom makes a face whenever I bring that up. Maybe liver is just for pups? Although she says if it's cooked right, with onions and bacon, it isn't too bad.

Back to my Sentinel tabs. We ran out and had to go pick up another supply. Good thing Mom pays for them and not me. Wow. Twelve dinky little tabs for $90.00. Yes...NINETY dollars. Sheesh. Life is expensive. (and PS - I weigh 9.6 pounds. Can you believe it?)

Hmmmmm...what else? Oh....yes. Remember my Grandma? It will be exactly one year to the day that she went to the Rainbow Bridge on November 27th, which is also Thanksgiving Day. Mom said she wanted us to spend it with Grandpapa, so we're going up to Santa Monica and do just that. We're going to go to Uncle Mike and Aunt Janet's for dinner. Mom's also bringing a pumpkin pie just like Grandma used to make. Considering Mom doesn't cook anymore this should be interesting. Is it just me or did this last year go pretty quickly?

(Here's me and Lolly making big plans)


About my friend, Lolly. She was at Doctor's when I got there. We hit it off right away. Now we're practically best girl friends. My mom gave her dad a business card so we could have a play date at my office sometime. She reminds me a lot of my very good friend, Star, whom I haven't seen for everly such a long time....ever since she jumped out her car window on the freeway off-ramp because she was so excited about seeing me. I guess her mom didn't care for that much. Like having to chase Star in the traffic and all. Dog, if I did that, I bet I'd be in really big trouble and maybe even get grounded or my allowance taken away. That is SOOOOO dangerous.

We're working tomorrow, probably. And Mom brought a bunch of stuff home to do today, too. That, and she's reading a James Patterson book, which she pretty much loves.
She hates it when writers don't do their research, but Patterson is pretty good. One time an author wrote about how the character who lived in Santa Barbara made a sandwich and spread Hellmann's mayonnaise on it. Sheesh. Even I know that they sell it as Best Food's mayonnaise west of the Rockies. Mom wrote him about it but all that happened was she got stuck on a mailing list and now she gets advertisements every time that author has a new book out. Not even so much as a "Thank you!". Hmmmph.

Enjoy your weekend. I know I will. Napping, barking, napping, snacking, napping....oh, and watching some "Animal Planet", maybe.

Love,

Mary-Margaret O'Brien

PS: My mom's going to be 9.142857142 dog years old on November 15th. Wow. That's a lot of dog years, huh?

Dear Diary.....

Sorry I haven't written in you for a while. Stuff happens...life happens...no matter how hard I plan, I know I have to depend on other people to help me, and I can't plan for anybody but me. I try, but you know how it is.

I know where everyone's office is. Mom laughs because she thinks that I'm so little that I shouldn't be a good tracker. But I am. I really am. We go out the door and she says "Go find Auntie Linda!" She's in charge of the whole building, you know. She calls me "PooPoo LaLa" and it makes me smile. No body but Linda can call me that. It's what you might call a "pet name".

I go out the back, up the walkway to Starbuck's....cross over and there's the elevator. I wait while Mom punches #2 and we go up. I get out and walk right over to Aunt Linda's. First, I look in through the glass to see if Ozzie is there. He's my student from Puppy School. He's pretty polite to me but still...he does have big feet and he sometimes accidently steps on me. Not on purpose, but I have to be careful.

Whoopeee....it's safe. I stand up and look in and Linda sees me. "POO POO LA LA", she says, and I race right over to her and give her kisses. I just love her so much. I've known her ever since I was a baby. Then I go visit Mike McMillin who owns the building. Ozzie is his brother, and is Mike's Mom's dog. I give him kisses, too, and then tell Mom to quit yakking, and that it's time to go to work.

A couple of days ago I saw a familiar face on the sidewalk in front of our building. OHMYGAWSH...it was Opie, a black miniature poodle. We met at Miss Marilyn's Day Spa a few months ago. We circle and sniff and then sniff and pounce. It's a pup thing, but you get the drift. Our mom's start talking and his mom asks what my name is. "Mary-Margaret O'Brien", says my mom. Woo hoo....she tells mom that me and Opie already had a play date at Miss Marilyn's and that's how come we are so friendly. What can I say? I know LOTS of people and pups around town. Mom's pretty amazed that more people know me than her.

Oh yeah...the other thing is that our building was getting painted. One of the painters was lying on the deck on his side so he could paint under the window sills. I tippy-toed up to him and sniffed a little here....a little there....(hee hee)...and he didn't even notice me. Then, I gave him a really big schlurpy kiss and he went "Whooooooooa!". (hehehehehehhe) He laughed and we played a bit. He wouldn't let me get into the paint, though. Darn it all.

What else? Ummmmm....Oh, I know. We got to work this morning and I saw my friend Robert. Some people call him Bob, but he's Robert to me. He had a treat in his pocket for me and I made him feel really loved for a while. Mom said to hurry up, we were late for work. So I said goodbye to my friends and skittered up the stairs.

I just LOVE my work and my clients. Even my friend, Jami, came by today, and had lunch with me. We played for a bit and then she had to go back to work and so did I.

Sorry about not having pictures for you. The darn battery needs to be charged again. Maybe tomorrow?

Love,

Mary-Margaret

Dink's Memorial Fund

Whenever I can, I make a contribution to Dink's Memorial Fund. There's a lot of pups out there who need some extra help, like Bentley and Shadow and....maybe some day, even me...or YOUUUUUU!

My Aunt Connie is running the auction there. See, you can donate your allowance AND get some neat stuff, like shirts, beds, blankets, bows (don't tell Mom about the bows, though) and toys and....well, you just name it. Makes giving pretty much fun, don'tcha think?

Please read Dink's story and look deep inside your hearts AND your pockets. I don't have pockets, but I have a really big heart. So if I have some money and no pockets to put it in, I send it off to Dink's Fund.

Thank you, everydoggy, for your love and support.

Mary-Margaret

Sunday is Fambly Day

Yesterday, my Uncle Michael and Aunt Janet brought my Grandpapa down to MY house, and everybody (except MEEEEE) went out to lunch. I got kisses, cuddles and belly rubs before they left, and Mom told me to answer the phone and take messages. Nobody called, so it wasn't a problem. When they got back, I got some more kisses and cuddles, and then they left, except for Mom, who plopped into her big leather chair and sighed. Sometimes things wear her out more now than they used to. She said they went to the South Coast Winery and that it was VERY VERY good. That's right.....rub salt in the wound, why don't you. And NEXT time...you will take MEEEEEEE! Right? Hmmmmm???

Tonight was just relaxing time. We had dinner and she nestled into her chair and me on the couch, and we watched "Two and a half Men". We're hooked on it now, and absolutely love it. All the re-runs are new to us because we never watched it before a couple of months ago. Pretty interesting characters, and just the funniest script ever.

As I was dozing off, Mom stretched and accidently stuck her foot in my face. Wow...that was unexpected and I shot up like a fireworks display. How DARE she? I got all a-twitter and snapped at her big toe. Hmmmmmph. The rudeness of some people. She apologized over and over but I'm making her suffer. How would SHE like it if someone about 25 times bigger than her stuck a foot into HER face, hmmmmmmmm?

That's all for now. Off to bed. G'night and God bless...

Love, Mary-Margaret

Stress Test & My Client

Here's how it came down. The old lady goes to the hospital and they escort her into a room and tell her to take off all her clothes down to the waist. She looks at the treadmill and goes "Huh???". Then they tell her to put on a gown with the opening to the front and lay on a table. Since the table had no stirrups, she felt safe enough. She does, however, inquire as to why she had to wear comfortable close-toed shoes. Seems there was a communication error between the appointment desk and the doctor. The treadmill isn't even part of the equation here.

Right arm - IV solution; left arm - blood pressure cuff. Tech, and RN and RN's assistant convince her she will NOT have a stroke or a heart attack and that her heart rate is 77. They will bring it up to 132-134 using some solution in the IV

Every 60 seconds they asked how she felt. Going from "Fine", to "I can feel my heart beating in my belly button!"....to "Yegads...my head feels like an over-ripe canteloupe!", she got through the test just fine. She informed the ladies present that she does NOT like that feeling, and now remembers why she doesn't exercise more.

She's told that her heart is fine, she's at 96% oxygen (whatever THAT means), her blood pressure is fine, and she should go downstairs and get a flu shot.

So much for all the worry. Thanks, everybody, for your support. She's back to her feisty old self now. Lucky me!







Later this afternoon one of my very good clients, Mrs. Lillard, called to see if I was available. Well, you need ask? So she came over to see MEEEEEE, and brought me a whole jar full of "Three Dog Bakery" All-Naturals "Made with Itty Bitty Bones Peanut Butter", oven baked treats for dogs. I tell YOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!!! They are dee-lish! I was beside myself with joy. And if it weren't for Mom and Mrs. L, I would have gobbled down the whole thing. But....I guess....oh, heck...I could stand to lose a few pounds.





So that was my day pretty much. At the moment, I'm relaxing on Mom's desk with my present right next to my left ear, keeping an eye out for anyone who might want to swipe one of my treats. Nope. MINE MINE MINE!!

Love,

Mary-Margaret

Red-letter day for MEEEEE

Wahooey! The old lady is actually taking dictation again. My heart be still!! I am overwhelmed with joy. (ok ok....a little sarcasm never hurt a pup, did it?)



First off, I put my pressie from Cousin Shadow right about where Mom would have to walk to get to HER office. She got the hint. Wow, can Shadow and Aunt Dee ever wrap a present, huh? Tape tape everywhere. On the package, on the card, on the box (which originally smelled like fudge and drove me everly so crazy!) and finally, on my present.

And here's my BEE-YOO-TEE-FULL card:



Dog, oh dog, what WON'T they think up next? Just what I ALWAYS wanted:



OH YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS! Perfect for taking on long trips for when you run out of gas (pardon the pun). I just LOVE LOVE LOVE it:



Thank you EVERLY so much, Shadow and Auntie Dee. I want to shop where YOU shop!

Love, Mary-Margaret

PS - I got another post card to add to my collection. Yup. From Abbey Mia and Harper. I sniffed it as soon as Mom told me I had mail, and I just KNEW it was from them. I put my special mark on the card (dental impressions, you know, are unique to the owner?) and now it's on display with my other two post cards. What a lucky pup I am.

The Camera and other Crises

To Whom it May Concern:

Re package I am supposed to be opening sent from my Auntie Dee and Cousin Shadow, rest assured I have NOT forgotten. It is sitting right next to my office bed in a half-opened state. My MOTHER IS SOLELY RESPONSIBLE for me not getting it opened. She thinks you all want a video of me doing it. Like...hello? It's MY pressie? But, no. She says she's getting a new battery. For the camera, and probably one for her, too. She needs one. But we wanted to let Auntie Dee know we don't mean to be rude or seem unappreciative. We just don't have a lot of time right now.

Mom's working her buns off, having a nervous breakdown from way to much work (no, she's not complaining yet), and she's having nightmares from the current financial crisis. I should know. She grabs ME at 3 in the morning and sobs on my belly. Which is fine. I just go back to sleep, soggier, but knowing that I provided a useful service. "Tha's m'yob!!"

Anyway...present...probably next week. She has to be at a conference in San Jose this weekend. Yes, I'm going, too. Oh Joy! Just what a puppy needs. Lectures on collecting judgments and how to find assets. Oh well. I'm told there may be Chicken Marsala for lunch. I hear my Aunt Rose just loved it. Even the green beans with almonds.

I'll let you know all about it when we get back.

PS - I do love presents, honestly. Just got another one today from the building owner's pup, Oz, who was my student at Puppy School. He put it into a bag so all I had to do was reach inside. He still says "Yes Ma'am!" when he talks to me. Did I mention he's at least twice my size now? I think I did a good job with him. I really miss teaching, you know.

Love,

Miss O'Brien, Puppy School Teacher

I don't CARE about small dogs!

"I don't CARE about small dogs!", said the old lady as she was getting on the elevator. "Awww! That's too bad. She cares about YOU!", said Mom. The grumpy old lady snorted and told Mom "You are RIDICULOUS!", and hurt Mom's feelings.

Mom just wheeled the microfilm reader down to the car to load it up, muttering "Pathetic old bag!". I told her not to get all fussed up about it. That is the ONLY person in the whole wide world that hasn't been won over by me...yet. Just give me time. That's all....just a little more time. Meanwhile, I gave that old bag...er...elderly woman with potential for being my fan.....my most WINNING smile. See?

Love and kisses to everyone!

Mary-Margaret O'Brien

Belated Birthday with C & C

This is how I feel about my FAMBLY, especially my Uncle Rudy, Cailin, Clancy, Uncle Jason and Auntie C. Also, Moe and Jack(lyn), but they ARE cats and ...well, you know how that goes.

Mom took a really nifty picture of me, Colleen and Cailin and, if Auntie C says it's ok, she'll post it on here. It's so beautiful of them and I'm very proud and want to share my fambly, but I have to have their ok, you know?

Wahooey! They said "OK". That's my second most favorite word next to "Suppertime". Yessssssssssssssssssssss!!



Here's what I like best after a visit, no matter who it's with: GOING HOME! There's a time to say "Hello" and a time to say "Good Bye". Knowing that makes the time in the middle everly so much more fun.



And this is for my Aunt Allie, because she was Rudy's (fka Sunshine afka Frank)foster mom in Las Vegas before he was adopted by my fambly into his forever home. I just love-love-love him so.



Everly yours for always,

Mary-Margaret

Mary-Margaret, Mentor at Large

Today, me and Mom went on a job. We serve papers to people, you know? Well, sometimes we make friends with the people we serve and extend a little courtesy, like telling them we have something and when would be a good time to come by. That's polite, dont'cha think?

Today, we did that and we were told to watch out for the yappy little Yorkie that works in their office. "Oh, Yorkie?", said Mom. "Then for sure I'll bring Mary-Margaret", she said. I'm very good at mentoring young pups and teaching them manners. I mean, look what I did for my very good friend, Jami.

So we get there and here's Bailey, a really nice (but noisy) almost one-year old Yorkette. Wow...she has energy, for sure. I can't exactly tell you what I do, but I will say that at one point, I just stood still in the middle of the room and watched her run circles around me. First clockwise...then counter-clockwise...then back again. I was laughing inside, but I kept my cool. Pretty soon, she wore herself out and we got into mutual sniffing and pouncing. That was fun.

My mom gave her mom a business card and wrote our home phone number on it so me and Bailey could spend more time together. Maybe I could be like a "Miss Manners" in the doggie world. My Aunt Vicki was thinking that her Sparky (poodle-terrier mix) could use some time with a mentor. I'll bet there are a lot of pups that want to do the right thing but just don't know how. You think I could get paid maybe? If I did, I'd probably just donate to the Yorkshire Terrier rescue fund, or to Dink's Memorial Fund (see previous blog entries).

So much to do, so little time. I'm a girl on an adventure with life. I expect the unexpected.

Oh yes...my kitty was waiting for us to get home last night about 8:00PM. Sitting right in front of the garage. When we drove up and opened the door, Kitty walked around the side of the house. We played a bit after that. And tonight, there was another kitty...like a Siamese seal point....waiting for me, too. Kitties are just like us Yorksters inside. They just want to be loved, and accepted. I know these things.

Mom says my Kitty either had a very big meal or she's expecting a family. She is getting a bit round. I wonder where she'll go? And what will happen to her babies? It's hard to tell with feral cats. I wonder if we'll still be friends?

I'll keep you posted.

Love,

Mary-Margaret

Columns, Collections and Celebrity!

First off, the "Yorkie Times" has one of my editorials featured in this month's issue. Click on the link to see. I'm also going to be a regular columnist in the "Ask Mary-Margaret" section where pups and owners can bring their problems to MEEE and I'll solve them. Maybe not the way they'd like, but hey....it's what I'd recommend.



I'm collecting post cards from all over the world. Already I have TWO. Yup. TWO POSTCARDS addressed to "Mary-Margaret O'Brien" for just me to read. They're from my very good friends, Abbey Mia and Harper, in New York. I bet I'm one of the only pups in the whole wide world to have my very own post card collection.

Lastly, a client came into my office this afternoon and I did my usual "Hello, I'm Mary-Margaret. How may I help you?". Once he got used to working with me, he kind of mellowed out and then asked if he could take my picture. THEN, he had Mom take a picture of me and HIM. I don't know what he's going to do with it, but heck. It's one of the things a "celebupuppy" has to do for their fans. What can I say, huh?

Also this afternoon my very best closest girlfriend, Jami Ramsey, came in with her dad, Fidel. Me and Jami got to go on a job waaaaaaay back in the hills where it's a little scary. Mom talked English to the Mexican workers, and when one guy did the "No habla" thing, Jami's dad started talking in Spanish. Woo hoo! They were so surprised, but we got some information and that's what really counts.

Jami is a Chihuahua so she probably speaks Spanish, too, except there weren't any dogs available to talk to this time around. Last week those guys had a Bichon Frise and a hairy Pit Bull. I couldn't understand a word they said, either.



Here's Jami getting ready to take herself for a walk. She's so smart. She grabs her own leash and heads to the door. That's her way of telling her dad that she's ready to go. I think I'll ask for a leash like Jami. She gets to do a lot more exploring with that thing than I do.

Have a nice evening...

Love,

Mary-Margaret

And now.....may I introduce....

............HOUDINI DOG! (This was on our AOL "Hello" site)

Personally, I think he's more like "EINSTEIN" dog. I keep telling you guys....we're NOT stupid. Even Mom tells her friends I'm a "peeple in a dog suit". (heheheh)

Oh yes. My Kitty Friend came by today to wish me a belated "Happy Birthday". Kitty was sitting in the back yard in my favorite corner when I went out this morning. Kitty hopped over the fence, took a short cut through the yard next door, and came back to visit with me on the side of our house.

Kitty sits on the fence and I sit in the gravel and we yak a bit. Then Mom has to come out a ruin the whole scene. Kitty doesn't mind visiting with me, but always runs away when Mom comes. She's GOT to stop scaring my friends.

Mary-Margaret

Birthday Party Fun Fun Fun

This is MY Birthday Cake. I am THREE YEARS OLD today, September 19, 2008. At 12:00 noon, we started the party. Mom was in the middle of helping a client and told her "Oops...cake break!", and our client joined in the fun. We had sort of an "open house" for the rest of the afternoon and people came by whenever they wanted to.



Uh.....do I detect a flat note in there somewhere? Nawww.....probably just my imagination.





I think if the ladies would quit yakking, they'd see that I would like a refill on my cake plate. Hmmmmmmm??



These are some of my "pressies", so far, anyway! Some people said they have mailed me things....I DO EVERLY LOVE SURPRISES, you know! One man came in to see my mom this morning and as he was leaving he "tipped" MEEEEEEEEE $20.00. He told my mom to buy me anything I want. ANYTHING! (Note: Nobody has ever tipped me before. I like this concept. Very much!)





Did you notice that my theme for the party was "Dora the Explorer"? One of my favorite videos is "Boots and the Ball". And I am very serious about putting MY stuff on MY plate. Yup. Whatever goes on THAT Dora Explorer plate is MINE!!





I think my very good friend, Zooey the Cat, talked to my Grandpapa last Sunday and mentioned that it was my birthday. They both went in on my card together. That Zooey. Always pretending to be so aloof. Silly cat!





Here's what's left of my cake after my party. Mom called Jami's dad, Fidel, and asked him to PULEEEEZE come in and take the cake home with him, for his family to finish up. I'm not really allowed to have much cake. My Aunt Debbie made sure Mom scraped the frosting off it before I got to eat it. Probably a good idea. I just got the cake and bavarian creme filling part. That still was enough to give me what Mom calls a "sugar high". Would you believe that I didn't nap a whole lot this afternoon?

And the "ladies" at my party said that was the best cake ever. Mom gets them at Albertson's Market on Rancho California Road. She asks for white cake with Bavarian cream filling and whipped cream frosting. I asked for the pink and yellow roses....my favorite.

I can't WAIT until next year. Maybe I'll try lavender flowers? I had yellow cake last year. Wasn't nearly as good as this year, trust me. YUMMMMM!!!

Oh yes. And probably the best part of the whole day? Was when my Grandpapa called me specially to wish me "Happy Birthday", and play that song on his harmonica for me. Mom was really bummed that she didn't take a video, because for the first time all day long, I sat still and really REALLY listened to my Grandpapa. He's a pretty nifty harmonica player, you know? He's had LOTS of practice. Really, he has.

Love,

Mary-Margaret

My FIRST Birthday Card for 2008!

This is way kewl. We went to get the mail and I'm being carried like a football in Mom's left arm. It's Wednesday - yayy (not!) - junk mail day. But whaddyaknow? Hmmmmm?



Addressed to "Mary-Margaret O'Brien". Lucky me the post lady knows who I am, I tell you. We get upstairs and finally I get plopped on the floor and handed MY card. I just LOVE LOVE LOVE opening cards and boxes and things.



Woo hoo! This card smells just like my friends, Abbey Mia and Harper and their mom, Elaine, from NEW YAWK! I am overjoyed. I can't contain myself. As I'm totally digesting their thoughtful sentiment, Mom snatches the back half of the card from me...like THAT'S fair? I ask you? But I'm glad she did. Now I can share it with all of you.



Thank you everly so much, Aunt Elaine and Harper and Abbey Mia. Ohhhh, I had the best time opening your card, and it was even better when I got to sniff you guys again. I can't wait until we meet in December. I hope, anyway. I'm told that's the plan. Until then...

Your friend always,

Mary-Margaret

Whoa....about my Birthday Presents?

People keep asking me what I want for my birthday. Gosh, I don't know. I have absolutely everything I could ever want or need. Except for duck jerky (my friend Gina at the bank ran out of it ...temporarily....I hope!). No....can only think of one thing that would really make me happy.

If anyone really wants to give me a present, and it's not required because you can have some cake if you come by my office on Friday anyway, but if you REALLY want to make me smile, please send a donation to Dink's Memorial Fund at the Yorkshire Terrier National Rescue, Inc. in Tennessee. Read about Dink and how his fund got started. Already I've gotten Mom to send them some help several times when someone won't let her pay them (like my Aunt Connie who made me the absolutely most luscious and comfortable silk bed).

The kids who are helped by Dink's Fund wouldn't get the medical care they need if it weren't for the people at YTNR and Dink.

Thank you for thinking of me.

On Friday, September 19, I WILL BE THREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! WHEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Mary-Margaret "The Birthday Girl" O'Brien

How to Develop a Lasting Friendship!

First off, somebody has to extend a gesture of friendship to the other person.

"Meowy-Mawgawet? Can you come out an play?"





Then, you say "Hello! Hello! Hello!" You absolutely must respect the other person's space. Take things slowly. Develop a mutual trust.



Maybe tomorrow, we will shake paws. Then (maybe?)play chase. We'll see what develops. I think humans would be well advised to follow my example, don't you?

Love and schlurpies....

Mary-Margaret

PS: Please PLEASE VOTE FOR US. Pick Tennessee, and then "Yorkshire Terrier National Rescue, Inc.". You can vote once a day until October 1st. Us little guys really REALLY need your help. Please?