International Dog Biscuit Appreciation Day

Did you know today is International Dog Biscuit Appreciation Day?   It's even listed on our Casey Jones Bones calendar.  Of course, the Lapdogs think every day should be about the appreciation of treats.

In honor of IDBAD and the Bruins pulling out a win in Chicago yesterday, I thought I'd share these pics from last month.  During one of Lola's adventures, we had stopped at a favorite doggie boutique for special treats and brought home these cool B's cookies to share. 

Teutul

 

Sophie

Zeus

Lola, my sweet baby girl who I miss so very much.

 

Make sure you give your pups an extra treat today... in Lola's honor.

Black & White Sunday: Start Your Engines

We hope everyone is enjoying the weekend, and ready for the Daytona 500 later today.  Sophie has been prepping for racing season by doing laps on her very own cold, white track...

As always, we'll be pulling for our favorite guys, Tony Stewart and Ryan Newman, today.  

I'll be missing my favorite couch cuddling buddy today, but I'm sure her brother Tut will do a nice job filling in (he's been trying really hard these past few weeks). 

Lola, showing her love of NASCAR ~ circa 2007

Wordless Wednesday: We've Had Enough

Dear Mother Nature,
Seriously... enough already.
Signed, New England

Sophie's looking for Spring... Have you seen it?

The Honest Kitchen Ice Pups

The Honest Kitchen Ice Pups

Where to Find: Chewy.com

As you may have guessed, we're going to be playing a little bit of catch up with reviews in the coming weeks.  First up is our January yum-yum from those awesome folks over at Chewy.com.

Having the winter blues and looking for some comfort, I chose The Honest Kitchen Ice Pups.  We were already familiar with some of the other items from The Honest Kitchen and are big fans.  When I read about Ice Pups, I knew we had to try them.

You're probably saying to yourself "Why the heck would she want her dogs to try something icy in the middle of winter?," right?  That's where the coolness (okay, pun intended) of this unique treat comes into play.  Ice Pups can be served three ways:

1. In the spring/summer, serve as a refreshing, chilled beverage
2. During those icky, sticky dog days of summer, freeze the liquid and create tasty ice cube treats for your pets
3. In the winter, serve as a warm, soothing broth aka Steamy Pups

Obviously, we chose option #3 for this review. 

The single serve packets are convenient and easy to use.  Simply empty into a mug...

Add warm water and stir...

The Lapdogs absolutely loved the tasty broth.  I wish I had actually gotten some photos of them licking it up... especially my sweet Lola, who couldn't get enough of the soothing broth.  This was her last review item and she did a stellar job!  Of course, that means we can't not give Ice Pups the Lapdogs' official 16 Paws Up seal of approval! 

While the broth looks almost good enough for humans to enjoy, Ice Pups are for cats and dogs.  Which means this is a tasty option for mixed-furry-race households - both your cats and dogs can happily share together! Additionally, Ice Pups are ideal for all life stages.  Grain and gluten free, the formula is also good for those with sensitive stomachs.  What I love best, is it's made in a human food facility with 100% human-grade, recognizable ingredients: dehydrated chicken, turkey, whey, dandelion, asparagus, watercress, honey and parsley.

With the bitter cold temps still slamming the Northeast, as well as many other parts of the country, now is the time to order some Ice Pups for your pack!  With Chewy's free 1-2 day shipping on orders of $49 or more, you might as well stock up for the summer

Disclosure: Chewy.com sent a box of The Honest Kitchen Ice Pups to Lapdog Creations, free of charge for review purposes. I was not compensated for this review and all opinions expressed are my own. 

Monday Mischief: President's Day?

Happy President's Day! While she might not have been "President" of anything, Lola certainly was Queen of the Lapdog pack.  The days pass and tears still fall, but I am trying to smile as much as I can when thinking about my baby girl.  She truly had a personality like no other.  Whether she was getting into mischief or snuggling with me on the couch, she always made me smile and I hope she'll make you smile today as well.

I recently realized that Flickr allows me to share Instagram video clips (yippee- no need to upload the short clips to You Tube), and wanted to share these two from one of our adventures to Mickey D's and Woof It Down last month.  We certainly had some fun little rides and boy did she love those double cheeseburgers!

We miss you Baby Girl, aka Queen Lola... Thank you for always making us smile, teaching us about unconditional love, and reminding us just how short & precious life truly is.  You truly were the best friend any girl could ever hope for, and I'm so proud that you were mine.

{This Moment} See Beautiful: Comfort

This timing of this month's See Beautiful blog hop seems rather fitting in so many ways, as does Sugar's topic of dog's comfort.

I agree with Sugar's Mom 100% - it is impossible to hide your feelings from your dog(s), and they certainly do feel empathy.  Being a multi-dog household, I can attest to the fact that every dog is different.  They each have their own unique personalities and they each have their own ways of comforting their humans.

Talking  - err, typing - about this, brings up so many memories of Lola.  She had a knack for comforting me anytime I needed it and I miss her so very much.  I miss her greeting me as I arrived home, always with a toy in her mouth.  I miss winding down the day, snuggling with her on the couch while watching our favorite TV shows.  I miss her entangling herself in my yarn as I knit.

I miss Lola.  Her smile was infectious, her desire to cuddle made my heart melt, and when she gave you a kiss, it was pure joy.  My girl was so amazing that even during her toughest days, while fighting her own pain, she made it a point to comfort me, licking away my tears. As selfish as this sounds, I was counting on my baby girl to be there to comfort me when it came time to say goodbye to her big brother.  Although, I know losing her brother would have been the hardest thing for her to go through... 

In keeping with Sugar's Mom's comfort theme, I want to tell you about the awesome folks over at Chewy.com.  We are so proud to be a part of their blogger family. Sure, the dogs get to taste test treats each month, but their Mama gets to partner with a special company who truly cares about pets and their families.  As if sending us free stuff to try wasn't enough, the Chewy team continues to go above and beyond, surprising and amazing us each time. 

I know some of my fellow Chewy blogger team members have already shared the beautiful portraits they recently received from Chewy, but I was saving mine for a special post.  Today seems quite fitting.  

Our portrait arrived on January 29th - a heart-wrenching day that will forever be etched in my heart - the day we said goodbye to our baby girl.  Not only did Lola get to see it, but she had a grand time barking at the FedEx man (it's been so quiet in our house since then). 

The portrait is a take-off of the photo-shopped pic I posted to wish everyone a Happy New Year, and while I never would have guessed this would be the one picked to be painted, it sure did make us all smile (as the accompanying note suggested). And, I can't help but smile each time I look at it now. 

 

The next day, we received another special delivery from Sydney and the Chewy team.  It was snowing and the florist called to make sure we were home to get a delivery.  Oddly enough, not one dog barked when the man pulled into our driveway (which, if you ever pulled into our driveway, well... let's just say, the whole neighborhood would know someone was at our house).

The flowers truly touched my heart.  I love all flowers (what girl doesn't), but these weren't any 'ole flowers, they had an extra special touch to them... the color purple.  Purple was Lola's color. 

The arrangement was stunning.  The white roses (full size and mini) opened up the next day and smelled incredible.  That distinct, and comforting, floral smell greeted me as I arrived home for several days after.  Lola loved to stop and smell the roses, just like her Mama... I hope she was looking down and sniffing away.  

Thank you so very, very much to Sydney and the entire Chewy family for the concern and compassion you have shown us, and the comfort you have sent to us.  I am so proud to be a part of your team, and honored that you care so very much about my furkids.

I brought my baby girl home on February 3rd.  She really would have loved her flowers...

Wordless Wednesday: Snow, Snow Go Away!

Happy Wednesday from the new North Pole, aka New England...