We Visited Your Mom Today!

Astrid and I are a therapy pet team. We visit three living facilities and Alzheimer's centers each month. If the thought of this makes you shudder a little, you must not have visited your mom...or your grandma or grandpa or your sister that has had a stroke lately. Depressing, dreary and waiting to die? No way.....did you know that these residents form the same kind of cliques that you remember from junior high? Well, maybe that isn't the most encouraging news you've heard lately, but our point is that the same human needs and desires don't diminish the day one enters a living center, whether it be assisted or intensive care. Here's an example......at the Alzheimer's center there is one very pleasant lady that is always delighted to see Astrid arrive for her scheduled visit. She is, EXCEPT for the days she is sitting with her best friend. On that day, like her friend, she doesn't like dogs either. This is perfectly okay with us because we understand that the friendship of this woman is daily, Astrid's visit is once a month. 


People in nursing, living and rehab centers aren't waiting to die. They wake up each day to live one more day of their life. Each day, each moment of one's life is important, whether it is enjoyed in the 22nd year of life or the 92nd year of life. If you wish there was something you could do to 'give back' in life, your opportunity may be as close as your dog. Your dog doesn't need to know a million tricks or even obey your every command. Every organization has pretty much the same standards but the requirements for registration vary greatly. Our organization...Therapy Dogs, Inc....requires a simple physical test and then three visits that are observed by a qualified tester/observer.  You might enjoy visiting someones mom, grandma or grandpa or sister who has had a stroke and recuperating.  Save some time to listen to their stories, too, you love 'em! And don't forget to add that 'awwww' factor to your dog...a super cute bandana from Astrid's Etsy shop or ArtFire studio!

Astrid Plays Dice

There are so many things to do with your dog once they have learned the simple behavior 'touch'. Simple things become quick and rewarding bonding times throughout the day. Here Astrid plays a game of dice.

A Game Of Touch

When Astrid learned to play 'touch', it was really the launching pad to all kinds of fun stuff to learn and do. We learned to play the game using a clicker which makes learning so much faster and more fun. She, actually I should say 'we', never tire of the game especially on a nice Autumn morning!

Better Pictures

With Autumn in full swing, Halloween just gone by, Thanksgiving around the bend and Christmas coming up shortly thereafter, Astrid and I are in 'full picture mode'.  Who can ever have too many pictures of their dog, anyway? Two problems, though. Astrid is a big black dog and she's a great little poser. Action pictures are few and far between and her sweet face always looks like a blur of black. Those beautiful eyes of hers always blend right into her face in the pictures! So, I decided to turn to the internet this morning for some answers. I got really specific on this one....into the search box, I typed "how to take better pictures of my big, black dog". Can't get more specific than that. Can't get more specific than the #1 site that came up, either....How To Photograph Your Big Black Dog. Full of beautiful pictures and lots of good ideas, we've decided to give it a go. We are going to try all of the suggestions in this blog that we are able to accomplish with our iPhone camera applications and/or our still shot feature on our video camera. 


First, he recommends that we don't worry about expensive equipment so much. That part is easy as we don't have a real camera, only our iPhone camera and a video camera that will do still shots. That out of the way, we moved on to the suggestion of turning on the flash, even out of doors on a sunny day. Here, we have for you the results.


Picture #1 and #2 were taken with our iPhone and the application called Camera Plus as are the other pictures shown. While I am a morning person, maybe pointing the camera east at 9am is not a good idea. These pictures were very washed out. Too bad because Astrid automatically sits and poses for pictures, so getting ones of her standing would have been a very good thing.

Picture #3 is still washed out, but I'm discovering that if I am going to take pictures at 9am facing east, getting closer is better. 

Picture #4 is of Astrid having gone into 'pose' mode finally. The lesson learned in this last picture is that facing east at 9am with the flash on will defintely produce a washed out picture, but still, closer is always better. The one real improvement is that Astrid's beautiful eyes can be seen in all of these pictures. 


Later this week, I'm going to continue to follow the suggestions in this blog. We will still be a morning human/dog team but we think that turning on the flash will continue to produce better results. What we will work on is our positioning. Maybe we will face west next time. 

Halloween Give Away!

It's that time of year. The time when we wish it would cool down a little! Maybe if we just think cool thoughts it will help. It can't still be hot on Halloween, can it? Let's think Halloween coolness and win a cool Halloween bandana from the Astrid Nicole Etcetera bandana boutique at the same time. It's simple...guess the number of beads in the little glass dish and post your answer here as a comment. Be sure to put a name that would identify you as the winner in your answer! The winner will receive their choice of a Halloween bandana or collar from Astrid's Etsy or ArtFire shop. Winner will be announced in this blog and on My Dog Space in the 'Autumn Dogs, Halloween Fun' group on Wednesday, September 29th.

Hoof'n and Woof'n Fall Festival

Today my mom and dad took me to this Fall festival. Boy oh boy, I'll bark ya, when I first got there, I didn't where to look!



We started to walk around and there were tents, dogs, horses and even swimming pools everywhere.



There were even ponies...

There were dogs selling stuff...



and dogs that needed homes.



I just had so much fun! We even got this goodie bag full of dog stuff that my dad is carrying. Before we left to come home, I barked goodbye to the horses.

The Times They Are A Changin'

Not quite as dire as the message in the Bob Dylan song of 1964, the message of change is already in the air. Even here in North Carolina, the morning air...much to Astrid's and my delight during our 6am walk...is much cooler. The shadows from the trees are in different locations then at the height of summer. That noise we hear at the slightest breeze is the sound of leaves already beginning to dry out in preparation for their Autumn show of color. Much to the delight of Moms everywhere, the kids are slowly trickling back to school across the country and much to the ire of morning commuters, the school buses have hit the road again.


There is also a change happening at Astrid Nicole Etcetera, Astrid's Etsy shop that benefits her shelter. In addition to the bandanas and the occasional 'people' items that we've offered, we are adding pretty handcrafted collars and collar charms. Beginning with the upcoming Halloween offerings, you will find seasonal fabric collars and matching collar charms, plus pretty and stylish colors with matching charms for your dog to wear throughout the entire year.

Pictured here are the very first of these collars and charms and to introduce them in our shop, we are offering them as prizes in our end of Summer giveaway. We've been enjoying the Groovy Summer Fun Club all summer on My Dog Space, so in honor of the fun, we've got a dotted collar with peace charm that your dog will go ape over as the first prize. The second place winner will receive the pictured 'peace out' collar charm and third place will receive the really cool dog paw charm. To enter to win, leave a comment on this blog telling us the change that you and your dog are most looking forward to in the changing seasons.


Thanks for playing our end of Summer giveaway, which in this case is really a new beginning for an added line of fun neckware for your dog to get all 'decked out' in. Everyone who leaves a comment will have their name entered in a drawing which Astrid will preside over and be presented in video right here. We will announce the winner of our end of Summer giveaway in this same blog the day after the unofficial end of Summer, Labor Day, Tuesday, September 7.


****and the winners are...***

Fire Drill

Christmas In July Giveaway Giveaway Giveaway!

Simply guess the number of red, green and white beads in this cup (hint: the cup is a large one), leave your answer as a comment in this blog, and win! 1st prize is this adorable 'My Dog Is An Angel' bracelet. 2nd prize is the angel charm and 3rd prize is the paw print charm. 


The bracelet is strung on elastic and fits an average size adult wrist. The charms can be clipped off the key ring and used on a purse, clipped on your dog's collar or anywhere!


Contest starts today, Friday (7/16/2010) and ends Sunday evening (7/18/2010) and Astrid and I will announce the winner here in this blog on Monday (7/19/2010).


We appreciate your continued support of our Astrid Nicole Etcetera Etsy store which benefits the Santa Cruz Humane Society in Nogales, AZ with 100% net of each sale. 


We have our winners of our FIRST EVER Christmas in July giveaway! The "My Dog Is An Angel" bracelet goes to....Holly and Herbie! Congratulations, you were only 2 beads away at guessing 231. Angel Girl, Jessie Lou and Sasha Louise, you win the Angel Charm Key Ring...you were only off by 17 beads. Rosie...you get the Paw Print Charm Key Ring...you were off by just 23 beads. Thanks for playing everyone! We enjoy these games soooo much and hope you do too.

Playing Indoor Games

As we in Charlotte, North Carolina experience the 18th day of temperatures in the 90s, Astrid and I turn more and more to indoor games. We try to divide them up between what we call 'active' games like hiding treats and letting Astrid use her sniffer to find them, to the more passive, 'thinking' games like the one shown here, colors and shapes.