Washington Woos

Final Winners!

2010-08-14T14:51:00.003-07:00

We've reached the end of our summer road trip and it's time to announce the final winners. Yesterday's secret location was Charlottesville, Virginia and the first correct guess came from Team Husky! Way to go!

Here is a wrap-up of all of our daily winners:

Day 1: The Bumpass Hounds

Day 2: Kayla & Maebe

Day 3: Huffle Mawson

Day 4: Wild Dingo

Day 5: Turbo

Day 6: Kira & Scampi

Day 7: Lorenza

Day 8: Mango

Day 9: OP Pack

Day 10: Team Husky

We also took everyone else who commented on any of the summer road trip posts and drew two names for additional winners. The winners are Edda and Jack & Moo.

Let's take a look at our final map.

As you can see, we travelled all the way across the country in the 10 days of our summer road trip contest. We spent several days at our Missouri grandparents' house before continuing our journey to Virginia. You might be wondering why we decided to go to Virginia where it is almost 100 degrees. The answer is because our mom is going to start law school at the University of Virginia next week and we had to help her move! Of course, we have moved with her. So we are beginning our journey as law dogs.

To go along with our new jobs as law school canines, we are also changing the name of our blog and moving to a real domain name. Please update your links so you can still follow along with us. We will now be over at Blawg & Disorder. See ya there!

Summer Road Trip - Day 10

2010-08-12T18:00:00.001-07:00

It's the final day of our contest! Monday we were at the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri and the first correct guess came from the OP Pack! Congrats pups! The arch was pretty nice, but it was hotter than two Siberians could stand there. Mom wanted a picture of us sitting nicely at the base of the Arch and this is what she got. We were too hot to sit.

Let's check the map!

We are going to change the grand prize contest a bit since we have only received a couple guesses for our final destination grand prize and those guesses weren't even close. We have decided to give away two more $10 prizes instead of one $20 grand prize. Anyone who has left a comment on any of our road trip posts and hasn't won a prize yet will be entered into a drawing for a $10 Happy Hearts gift certificate and we will pick two winners from the drawing. We will email out the gift certificates to all winners next week (in case you have won and wondered what happened to your prize).

So now for our final secret location picture. We are on the grounds of the only university in the United States to be a designated World Heritage Site. What city are we in?

Note: Don't let the letters on the steps behind us throw you off. If they mean anything, we don't know what that might be, so it's not critical to figuring out the clue.

Thanks everyone for your patience with the delay of this last post. We had been using Dad's iPad for all of our travel blogging and on Tuesday morning, the iPad decided to forget that it has a sim card and it will no longer connect to the internet via 3G. We finally got Mom to go to a Starbucks so she could post this using their WiFi.

We will give everyone until 6PM Pacific Time tomorrow night to guess today's secret location. We will post the winner of today's secret location as well as the two winners from the drawing on Saturday. We will also let you know why we were tortured with a 3000+ mile road trip!

Post delay

2010-08-10T18:00:00.002-07:00

Due to some technical difficulties with the camera, the iPad, and just general blogging from the road things, our post for today will be delayed, probably until tomorrow. Stay tuned!

Summer Road Trip - Day 9

2010-08-09T18:00:00.002-07:00

It's the second to last day of our road trip! Yesterday we were at Stockton Lake, Missouri and Mango was our winner! Congratulations!

Once again, let's check the map.

For today's clue, we think you can get it from the picture alone. What city are we in?

The answer and tomorrow's clue (the last!) will be posted at 6PM Pacific time.

Summer Road Trip - Day 8

2010-08-08T18:00:00.002-07:00

It's day 8 of 10 of our summer road trip! Yesterday's winner was Lorenza, who was the first pup (who hadn't already won a prize) to guess that we were in Fort Scott, Kansas! Here is another picture Mom took of us while we were there.

Let's check the map. We're getting quite a few pins in southwest Missouri and southeast Kansas.

For today, our secret location might be kind of hard to guess, but we did have a lot of fun while we were there. According to the website of this destination, it is ranked in the top 10 sailing lakes in the United States and boasts 25,000 acres of clean, clear water. Where are we?

Answer and the next clue will be posted at 6PM Pacific time tomorrow.

Summer Road Trip - Day 7

2010-08-07T18:00:00.002-07:00

We're getting close to done with our summer road trip. Just three more days after this post! The winner for yesterday is Kira and Scampi for correctly guessing that we were in Overland Park, Kansas at Thunder, Phantom, and Ciara's house. It was so fun to meet some of our friends in person and Kat and Thunder definitely made a love connection!

Let's check our map again!

Our picture for today isn't very good because it was getting dark, but hopefully you will get the idea. We are at a fort, established in 1842 and was active until 1853 and then again during the American Civil War. What city are we in?

As you know by now, the answer and the next clue will be posted tomorrow at 6PM Pacific Time.

Summer Road Trip - Day 6

2010-08-06T18:00:00.002-07:00

We're halfway done with our summer road trip contest now that it is Day 6! Yesterday's winner was Turbo, who correctly guessed that we were in Lamar, Missouri, at Harry S. Truman's birthplace. The "S" in his name isn't actually an initial of a longer middle name, it's just an "S"!

Here is our map.

For today's secret location, we will accept either the city and state of our location or the name of who's house we are visiting. Hopefully this will be a pretty easy one.

Good luck! Answers and Day 7's clue will be posted tomorrow at 6PM Pacific Time.

Summer Road Trip - Day 5

2010-08-05T18:00:00.002-07:00

It's Day 5! I guess our clue for yesterday was a bit too difficult because no one got the right answer. We were at Prairie State Park, just outside of Liberal, Missouri. Since no one got the right answer, we used a random number generator and it picked #8, which means that Wild Dingo, who left the 8th comment wins for today!

So now that you know where we were, let's check our map.

For today's secret location, we are going to give another clue along with the picture:
We are at the birthplace of a US President, who had a middle initial, but no middle name. What city are we in?

Leave your guess in the comments and we will reveal the answer and the next clue tomorrow at 6PM Pacific time!

Summer Road Trip - Day 4

2010-08-04T18:00:00.002-07:00

Here we are, Day 4 of our Summer Road Trip contest. Our winner for yesterday was Huffle Mawson, for being the first to correctly guess that we were in Mitchell, South Dakota. The building behind us in one of the pictures is the World's Largest Corn Palace. It had some really neat murals made only out of corn. Who knew corn was so artistic! We were sitting on the bench in another picture with a guy who had a sign next to him that said "Do Not Touch". Luckily it didn't say "Do Not Lick" because Kat got a couple licks in before Mom caught her. The person in the pictures with us is our Aunt Kari. She is super stylish and cute, so we had to up our game so we were still cuter than her. :-)

Now that we have revealed our location for yesterday, let's check the map! Does anyone have a guess as to our final destination yet?

For today's secret location, we are going to give out a couple pictures and supplement the pictures with this clue:
In this picture, we are standing in the largest remaining tallgrass prairie in a certain state, where less than 1 percent of the original prairie remains.

We're not in this picture, probably for obvious reasons.

Good luck! The answer and the next clue will be posted tomorrow at 6PM Pacific Time.

Summer Road Trip - Day 3

2010-08-03T18:00:00.004-07:00

It's day 3 and we have our winner from yesterday - Kayla and Maebe! Way to go! Now we have had two days of winners, who will be next?

The secret location from yesterday was, of course, Mount Rushmore. Unfortunately pets are not allowed very close to the viewing area so our picture wasn't very good. Now that you know where we were yesterday, let's check the map.

Our secret location for today is more obscure, so we are going to give you three photo clues.

As always, good luck and we will post the winner and the next secret location tomorrow at 6PM Pacific time.

Summer Road Trip - Day 2

2010-08-02T18:00:00.003-07:00

Wow! We had lots of great guesses for yesterdays contest. Lots of guesses of Idaho, which were all right. However we are going to have to award the prize to The Bumpass Hounds, who were the first to guess that we were specifically in Coeur d' Alene, Idaho. Great job to all the guessers!

Here is our road trip map so far. We will update this every day.

Today's secret location is probably going to be a bit more obvious, so we will only give one picture today.

Good luck! We will post the answer and the next clue at 6:00 PM Pacific Time tomorrow.

Note: this post is late due to bad 3G coverage for the iPad. :-)

Summer Road Trip - Day 1

2010-08-01T18:00:00.002-07:00

Welcome to the first day of our summer road trip contest! Today we are giving you two clues to our location. Leave your guess in the comments and tell your friends to play along too!

We will post the answer, as well as tomorrow's clue at 6PM Pacific time tomorrow! Good luck!

Just put one paw in front of the other

2010-07-25T19:49:00.002-07:00

We have been working hard on a new trick. We are learning how to crawl. Apparently human puppies learn to crawl before they learn to walk, but Steve and I did it backwards and decided not to crawl until now, when we are three years old. Mom took a page out of Wild Dingo's blog and used a tripod to video our demonstration.

So what did you think? I think I'm way better at it than Steve, but I'm smaller and more agile than him.

Kat

Ice Cream Hangover

2010-07-24T21:12:00.003-07:00

As you saw in my Wordless Wednesday post, I was given the big job of licking the ice cream container clean. It's really a hard job, but somepup had to do it, so I stepped up to the plate. After licking out ice cream containers, sometimes a pup feels a little hungover.

Kat says the best medicine for an ice cream hangover is a nice, long walk, so we suited up for one. I think maybe Kat thought that I wouldn't make it so she really twisted us up so I had to keep pace with her.

I guess that's what's nice about having a sister. Sure, they boss you around a lot, but they are always there to help you get through a walk.

Also, don't forget! One week until the start of our Summer Road Trip contest.

Steve

Wordless Wednesday

2010-07-21T01:33:00.000-07:00

Can't talk now, busy.

Woo,
Steve

Ice Cream Run

2010-07-11T09:43:00.003-07:00

Yesterday we went on a family outing to a place called Husky Ice Cream.

They make all their ice cream in the store and with a name like "Husky" you know it's going to be the best. What we didn't know until we got there was that the neighborhood was having a street fair, so the place (the ice cream shop and the streets) were packed! That doesn't bother Kat or me though because we like being admired by all the people. What it does mean is that Mom didn't get very good pictures because there were so many people around.

When we first got there, Dad left us with Mom and went inside to decide what flavor he wanted. He picked Oreo. While he was inside, Kat and I were very good and sat next to Mom. She could hardly believe how good we were but mentioned that the summer heat has it's advantages, whatever that means. After Dad picked his flavor, he came back outside and gave his order to Mom and then stayed outside with us while Mom went to get the ice cream. At this point, I was getting kind of worried, because Mom didn't ask me for my order.

I shouldn't have doubted Mom though because she came back out of the store with two bowls of vanilla ice cream for Kat and me, Dad's Oreo ice cream cone, and a chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream cone for her. We never knew she could balance so much ice cream! Right away, Kat and I got to work eating our ice cream so it wouldn't melt.

I think Kat started to worry that I was going to try to take hers because she picked it up and moved.

About this time, Mom's ice cream cone was dripping on her hands, so she stopped taking pictures.

We really loved our ice cream. It's the first ice cream we've had that wasn't soft serve and it was delicious and took us a lot longer to eat, which Mom and Dad both appreciated. So I say, if you're in the area, go get yourself some!
Steve

Mount St. Helens

2010-07-04T18:19:00.002-07:00

Yesterday we went to Mount St. Helens. Perhaps I should really say that Steve and I just rode in the car, got out at the parking lot, walked around the parking lot and got back in the car while Mom and Dad went to see Mount St. Helens. Pets aren't allowed in most areas there, so it was kind of boring for us. Dad did take a picture of us in the parking lot.

That's not Mount St. Helens in the background, it's just some other spot. Here's a picture of Mount St. Helens.

As you can see, Mom and Dad didn't get to see the top of it, but I guess they got the idea of the whole thing. At any rate, it's better than what they saw when we went there a couple weeks ago during our camping trip when they saw this.

Even if we didn't get to actually see Mount St. Helens because of the no-pets rule, a day of riding in the car is much better than a day at home listening to fireworks, at least if you ask Steve.

We hope you are all having a Happy Independence Day if you're in the USA and if you're not, we hope you're having a happy July 4th!
Kat

We're having a contest!

2010-07-01T01:36:00.002-07:00

Beginning the first of August, we will be heading out on a road trip. The destination is a secret, as are the stops along the way. Each day, we will post a picture of us at a secret location and our readers can guess where we are! The next day, we will reveal the previous day’s location, as well as post a new secret location.

Prizes:

Daily Prizes (for guessing the secret location each day) - $10 Happy Hearts gift certificate

Grand Prize (for guessing the final destination) - $20 Happy Hearts gift certificate

Here are the ground rules.

No previous knowledge of the Washington Woos is required to play. We have not mentioned any hints on our blog as to where we could be going, so tell all your friends. Even if they haven’t read our blog before, they still might have the right answer.
No pictures will be photoshopped, except if the name of our location has to be blurred, for example, if we are standing in front of a sign. This means that we will physically be in every location.
We will be travelling only by automobile. That is a good hint because we can only travel the distance that a car can travel in a single day. Of course, our parents could be speed demons or slow pokes, you just never know.
We will be departing from Seattle, Washington, USA.
We may or may not travel the same distance each day.

Here are the contest rules.

If your human is a friend of our mom on Facebook, you are not eligible to win the grand prize, but you are still eligible for the daily game. This is because our mom has mentioned the final destination on Facebook but not the secret locations along the way.
The first commenter to correctly guess the daily secret location will win the prize.

If no commenter correctly guesses the daily secret location, we will award the daily prize to one of the commenters, based upon a random drawing.
Please only make ONE guess on each post for the daily prize.
We will reveal the winner on the next day’s post, so guesses will only be eligible to win if they are left within 24 hours of the posting of the photo clue.

The first commenter to correctly guess the final destination will win the prize.

If no commenter correctly guesses the final destination, anyone who left a comment on any of the Summer Road Trip posts will be entered to win the grand prize and we will award it based upon a random drawing.
You can guess as many times as you want for the final destination, as you might get some clues as to where we could be headed as you learn more about our secret locations along the way.
We will reveal the final destination (and the winner) in our last post of the series, which will be on August 11, 2010.
You may leave your final destination guesses as a comment on any of our Summer Road Trip posts, just make sure you say that it’s a final destination guess.

All prizes will be distributed via email, so if you are a winner, you will have to provide us with your email so we can email you the prize.

That’s it! Let us know if you have any questions. It’s not too complicated, but we want to make sure we are clear with the rules. Please spread the word because the more players we have, the more fun it will be!

The fun will start on August 1, 2010!!!

Camping, Wilbur Style

2010-06-28T16:51:00.000-07:00

While the furry beasts were camping the other weekend, I did a little camping of my own.

This is me, camping out on the furry beast cage. I don't normally sleep here, so that's why it's camping.

Look how dry and warm I am.

Meow,
Wilbur

Camping = Wet

2010-06-25T19:11:00.003-07:00

We went camping last weekend. As the old saying goes, it was real, it was fun, but it wasn't exactly real fun. It rained the entire time. Rain doesn't deter Mom though, so she still look pictures of us.

We tried to channel The Thundering Herd with our new tie-out line. The only problem with it was that Dad hooked us to the line with our leashes and our leashes got super gross with dirt and water. I don't think we had been home for five minutes before Mom had the leashes in the washing machine. Next time, Dad is going to use something else to hook us to the line.

At one point, Mom looked over and saw Steve giving himself a pawticure in his water bowl. I think he looks pretty zen.

We were able to do some hiking near the campground, where the forest was thick enough that we didn't feel the rain drops. We crossed a trippy-trap bridge, but the little camera had some problems with the picture since it was dark in the forest.

We also found some huge trees that had fallen over. For some perspective, look how tiny Steve and I look on the top of this tree!

Next we came upon a river. It had some pretty good rapids. We were doing a lot of thinking next to the river, as you can tell in the picture.

Finally, we found this tree that was sort of hollow in the middle. Mom tried to get us to pose in the tree, but as usual, it didn't quite go as she had planned for me, but Steve was the perfect model.

After the hiking, we retired to the tent, or as I like to call it, the giant crate. I quickly claimed my spot.

I don't know what Steve was thinking because he laid down on the floor instead of on the other cot.

We're going camping again in a few weeks and Mom sure hopes it doesn't rain all weekend next time!
Kat

Roll Over, Roll Over, Send Kat Girl Right Over

2010-06-20T11:46:00.003-07:00

I've been learning how to roll over. I was going to edit this video to just show you my last two attempts, so you would think I have it down perfectly, but Steve said that the first tries were some of the funniest, so I should share those too.

What I like about roll over is that when I am done rolling, Mom gives me a piece of cheese. Cheese is one of the most tasty things ever invented, at least that's what I think.

Steve cannot roll over, due to his froggie doggie style. Mom has tried a lot with him but he is just stuck in his ways.

Kat

The best way to play golf

2010-06-17T18:42:00.003-07:00

My dad likes to play golf. Usually he disappears for a while and then comes back saying he has been playing golf. I wondered what golf was, so I took Stormy's golf class in the School of Siberian Studies. It was quite helpful, but I didn't really get it until the other day when Dad was practicing in the backyard.

Check it out! It turns out that when dads play golf, they just hit cuzes around! Can you believe it? I don't know why I haven't gotten to go with Dad when he plays golf since I love to chase cuzes. Stormy, does Dave know this is what your dad is doing? I know Dave likes to chase things too, so maybe he should hit the course next time your dad heads out.

Kat

Let's Celebrate!

2010-06-13T20:18:00.002-07:00

It's official! We're a house full of Canine Good Citizens! I passed my test this afternoon, joining Steve among the ranks of the certifiable. Wait, is that a good thing?

To celebrate, we went to get ice cream.

Here's Dad ordering two vanilla cones.

He was really happy to order ice cream for his Certified Good Girl.

Steve kept an eye on Dad to make sure he ordered everything correctly. Steve was also hoping for some chicken nuggets, but that didn't happen.

Here's me peeking through to tell the drive-thru lady to pile a lot of ice cream on the cone.

Yes! Ice cream!

And Steve, who's an ice cream eating blur.

I think you should all go get ice cream to celebrate too!

Kat

Steve on a blanket

2010-06-04T09:14:00.003-07:00

Mom finished my blanket over the weekend. Remember how she made Kat a blanket and Kat modeled it out on the grass? Well, since it's raining like crazy here, I had to model my blanket in the living room. It's not quite the same but hopefully you can get the idea.

Here I am trying out how the blanket works for laying down.

That worked pretty well, so I tried just a sit.

Finally, a close up of my handsome face.

I'd say that my blanket is pretty nice. It does have a lot of pink, but I'm pretty secure with my boyness, so I'm good with the pink.

Steve

PS. Wilbur has a blanket too, but hasn't cooperated for pictures yet.

Run Kat Run!

2010-05-25T19:59:00.001-07:00

Here is me rollerblading with Dad. Dad says that I am the better skating partner because I am focused on just running while Steve wants to stop and smell (or pee on) every tree and bush he passes. I hope that means that I will get to go skating the most!

Kat

Run, Steve, Run!

2010-05-23T19:56:00.000-07:00

Since the weather has been getting nicer, Dad sometimes takes us when he goes out on his rollerblades. It's really pretty fun. We have learned commands for mushing while running alongside Mom and Dad on their bikes, but with the rollerblades, we have more freedom to feel the wind blow through our fur.

Here is a video of my turn, and an interview with Dad and me at the end. Next Kat will post her turn! Of course, she was pretty vocal in this video about what she thinks about my turn.
Steve

Steve the multitasker

2010-05-21T19:48:00.000-07:00

One day, I told Huffle about how Mom makes us do something every night before we get our supper and how sometimes I try to do everything I know in one motion so I can eat faster. Huffle asked to see my amazing multitasking skills, so without further ado, here I am.

It's pretty impressive, huh? I don't know why Mom doesn't recognize it as a talent. Instead, she just makes me keep trying until I do each thing one at a time. Apparently she hasn't learned much in all of those classes she takes at work about lean manufacturing principles!

Steve

Our new trick

2010-05-19T19:37:00.004-07:00

We finally downloaded several videos from the video camera and we are going to share them with you in our next few posts.

First up, a new trick. We have been working hard learning some new tricks. Well, it might be more appropriate to say that I have been working hard. I have learned two new tricks and Steve has just learned one. I have decided that Steve might not be as smart as I am.

This is the trick that both of us have learned - SPIN! This video was taken right after we learned it. We are much better at it now. Mom doesn't have to make her hand signals as big and we can also do a synchronized spin. We'll have to get that on video soon.

Kat

PS. Next up is a video that we created from a special request from our pal, Huffle! Check out our next post.

Role Reversal

2010-05-06T08:07:00.002-07:00

Sometimes I like to show my dad who is in charge and I sit on the couch and make him use the ottoman.

What do you do to show your parents who is really in charge?

Kat

I love my mom

2010-05-04T07:12:00.002-07:00

Mother's Day is coming up in a few days and I suppose I could have saved this picture for then, but I'm not going to do so. I love my mom so much that I think any day is a good day to tell her that I love her. That's why I cuddled up with her on the couch.

I'm pretty sure she likes it when I cuddle. I mean, sure she said her arm went to sleep, but then I helped her with the sudoku on her iPhone, so I think all was forgiven.

Steve
PS. I have decided to take Jack a-Roo's (NACGCY) advice and just go by Steve with my friends and Steven Oliver, CGC when I need to impress and get steaks.
PPS. NACGCY stands for (according to Jack) Not a Canine Good Citizen Yet. I'm sure the only reason Jack is still NACGCY is because his mom is really struggling with the training. It's a pretty difficult test for humans.

I'm a good boy!

2010-05-03T10:57:00.002-07:00

Breaking news! (Or a few days old news!)

I'm a Canine Good Citizen! I took my test on Thursday and passed. Dad says I'm now a CGB, Certified Good Boy. Don't worry though, I still don't listen to a word he says. He never hands out treats, so I have no reason to listen to him. Mom, on the other paw, is pretty sneaky with the treats. I can never tell when she's going to pull a piece of hotdog or cheese out of her pocket, so I try to listen to what she tells me to do and that's how I ended up being a CGC or CGB, whatever.

So what do you all think? Should I sign my name Steven Oliver, CGC or Steve, CGC or just Steve? I'll do all three for today. ;-)

Steven Oliver, CGC
Steve, CGC
Steve

Smiling Steve

2010-04-22T08:15:00.003-07:00

Mom took me on a photoshoot. We stopped at a park during the middle of our walk. Mom wanted to get a picture of my cute pinkish nose before it darkens up for summer.

I had a hard time concentrating on her because there were kids playing soccer and I wanted to find a puddle so I could get a drink. Don't you think I look pretty tired?

Then one of the kids made a funny soccer move, so I had to laugh.

Boy, walks sure make me get the fat tongue!

Finally I gave Mom a nice look, but she didn't capture the pink of my nose.

Luckily she gave up at this point and we got back to walking. I much prefer walking to posing!
Steve

Hide and Seek

2010-04-20T08:10:00.003-07:00

Do you see anything in this picture?

Let's look a little closer.

Oops, I've been discovered. Time to move.

I could be a tight rope walker in the circus.

And now, my dismount.

The pictures end here because Mom was giving me too much attention and the furry beasts had to come bug me and then she had to save me. They ruin everything.

Meow,
Wilbur

It brings out the blue in my eyes

2010-04-18T14:07:00.003-07:00

Mom has been working hard up in the sewing room. First she created the Extreme Crate Makeover. Now she has created a quilt for me. Mom can't take all the credit though because Dave from the Army of Four helped her figure out how to quilt it. (Or maybe it was his mom, I can't remember.)

Now my blanket is finished and I took some time today to model it.

It's pink, blue, and chocolate brown. Don't you think the blue looks good with my eyes?

The bad thing about having your own quilt is that it follows you everywhere you go. Here it is, trying to rest with me on the couch.

It also goes to bed with me too, but I just don't have a picture of that.

Mom has just started on a quilt for Steve. Hopefully in a month or so, he will share his quilt!

Kat

PS. Just so you don't miss Steve too much, this is what he did earlier this week while Mom was putting her hair in a ponytail before our walk. He just gets so excited. (Sorry, it's not a very good picture.)

Medical Care by SKW

2010-04-06T15:39:00.003-07:00

The other day, Mom stayed home from work because she was sick. When Dad came into the bedroom to tell her goodbye, this is what he found.

Please excuse our eyes, the lights were off in the room when Dad took the picture.

So as you can see, we are very good at taking care of our sick Mom.

Kat
(I'm also very good at stealing Steve's favorite toy, which you can see under my head if you look closely.)

We've got mail!

2010-03-27T11:03:00.003-07:00

Back during the Olympics, our neighbor, Winston, sent us this really cool Vancouver post card. Mom has not been good at getting our pictures off the camera, but she did today, so you can check out the post card.

Here's a close-up of the front. That is the north shore of Vancouver in the picture.

And here's the cool message Winston wrote to us.

It's kind of hard to read in the picture but it says:

"Hi Guys,

Greetings from Vancouver. The North Shore area has the best off leash park that I go to lots. It is right on the ocean so there is lots of beach play.

Luv,

Winston"

Thanks Winston! We love getting mail!

Steve and Kat

Organizing the Garage

2010-03-15T20:01:00.002-07:00

Dad decided that he would organize the garage this past weekend. We didn't want Dad to have to do all the work, so we all pitched in (except Wilbur, who knows what he was doing).

I helped by smashing down the dirty dog towels.

Steve helped by supervising and Mom helped by checking her email.

The garage is now organized and I'm not sure how Dad would have done it without us!

Kat

Me too!

2010-03-14T19:48:00.003-07:00

Steve told you about how he's taking Mom to school for training (here and here). Apparently Steve needs some help with the Mom training because now I am taking Mom to school.

Before school starts, I have to find a nice chair where Mom can put her stuff. (Note to the Ao4's mom: the Boo Tote is great for school supplies!)

During school, we work hard on leash walking and greeting strangers. I have to eat a lot of hot dogs during leash walking time. It's hard work, but I still take time to look cute.

In fact, we've been working so hard that I have graduated! Mom is holding the certificate like she earned it or something, but really, it was all me.

I even had to walk nicely on a leash while ignoring the horses. If that's not diploma-worthy, I don't know what is!

Kat

Clean Socks

2010-03-12T12:58:00.004-08:00

A while back, (ages and ages) Zim of the Army of Four asked me a question:
Hey... how do you keep your socks so white? Do you ever take them off and let your mom wash them? Is your fur grey underneath them?

Thanks for the question Zim! It took my mom a long time to get a picture of me keeping my socks white. Then it took me a long time to decide if I was going to share it. Today I have finally decided that I will.

In the mornings, after Dad takes a shower, I use the leftover water in the shower to keep my paws clean.

I make sure to soap them up and wash them out.

For your other questions, no, I don't ever take my socks off. My socks are what make me cute and if I didn't have them, my mom might not put up with the stuff I do to her. And as for what is under my socks, I will never tell.

Meow,
Wilbur

Fun, fun, fun 'til my dad says my paws are too dirty!

2010-03-10T19:37:00.002-08:00

Dad took me to the dog park recently. I had a lot of fun, doing my favorite things. Running, chasing, play bowing, mud puddling. You know, all the good stuff. Dad's not good at taking a lot of pictures, but he did take this one. I think all of you pups can read between the lines and imagine the fun I was having.

Steve

Final Woolympics Results

2010-03-09T19:21:00.004-08:00

The results for the last Woolympics event, leash walking, have been tabulated and the winner is Kat! Not too much of a surprise there, but what did surprise us was that Wilbur took home the silver. Pretty good for a feline.

In the secondary event, Kat won for the loudest non-walker. If you think she was bad in that video, you'll have to listen for her in a video Mom made this weekend. We'll get that posted soon.

So the final results from the Woolympics are as follows. It's pretty amazing how we all won the same number of medals!

We also mentioned that our crate has undergone an Extreme Crate Makeover. It's a pretty remarkable change. Let's take a look at the crate before the makeover.

It was pretty bad. Some pups (no idea which ones) had chewed the bottom of the cover to shreds back in their younger days.

And here's the crate now.

Huge difference! The cover now covers all four sides and goes all the way to the floor. It can be tied up on any side. There are dowel rods (removable for washing) at the bottom of each side panel so they stay weighted down and hanging properly and the top has a pocket where Dad slid in some foam core to make the top solid so Wilbur can sleep up there. Mom made the cover, so it's customized just for us. It works out pretty well, nice and cozy.

I misunderstood, honest!

2010-03-02T08:01:00.003-08:00

What was that, Mom? You wanted me to go IN my crate? Oh, I thought you said to get ON my crate. Honest. That's what I thought you said.

Steve

PS. If you don't want me to get on my crate, please do not put Wilbur's dishes on it, even if it's just for a second.

Stay tuned for pictures of the new and improved crate!

Woolympics Event #4

2010-02-28T18:38:00.005-08:00

Today is the final night of the Winter Olympics and that means it's time for the final event of the SKW Woolympics. Before we get to the final matchup, it's time for the medal ceremony for the last event, Fast Eating. This event wasn't even close! Steve ran away with it to win his first gold medal of these Woolympic games. Kat won the silver and Wilbur won the bronze.And now for the medal count.Our final event of the games is the leash walking event. Now you might think that it's totally unfair for Wilbur to complete in proper leash walking, but until recently, Steve and Kat were also incapable of properly walking on a leash. So without further ado, the leash walking event!

Editor's comments: This video is longer because we wanted to leave in the post-event wrestling matches and also doesn't feature the Woolympics theme music so that we could also have a secondary event with Steve and Kat of who made the most noise while the other was competing.

Voting will be open until Wednesday!

New York Style Pretzel Bones

2010-02-21T21:09:00.002-08:00

It's been a really long time since I did an episode of Kat's Crazy Kitchen and for that, I fully blame my mom. I gave her a guilt trip this weekend and we worked together to bring you a new episode. Today, we're going to make New York Style Pretzel Bones.

First, gather up your ingredients. Mix up 1.5 cups of oat flour, 1.5 cups of brown rice flour and 0.5 cups of oat bran.

Add to that 0.5 cups of grated parmesan cheese, 0.25 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 egg and 1.25 cups chicken broth. Mix everything up to form a soft dough.

Roll the dough out on a floured surface to about a quarter of an inch thick. Use a cookie cutter to cut the dough into your desired shape.

Place the cookies on an ungreased cookie sheet. My mom cuts the bones in half, but hopefully your mom isn't stingy and will give you the whole bone. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes.

Let cool on a wire rack and store in the refrigerator.

These cookies were very easy to make. The dough rolled out nicely. You can also brush the cookies with egg and top with sesame seeds if you want to make them more pretzel-like, but we did not do this step.

As you can see, Steve and I were eager to try the cookies! We both give them two paws up.

Hopefully it won't be as long before I do another Kat's Crazy Kitchen episode. In the meantime, try out the recipe Shiloh and Shelby posted on their blog. It looks really tasty.

Kat

Woolympics Event #3

2010-02-19T19:58:00.004-08:00

Our readers voted and the medals for the Laser Chasing event have been awarded.The medal count, after two events, is as follows.
It could all change today, since we are bringing you event #3, fast eating! To make it a fairer competition, we are going to publish the times, but leave the voting open so our voters can consider style points as well.

It should be noted that Wilbur's video was sped up and at the end, you see him walk away. He didn't actually finish until a few hours later.

We'll leave the voting open until Monday!

Steve and Kat do Vancouver

2010-02-18T17:30:00.003-08:00

We will post the results of our laser chasing Woolympic event tomorrow, but for today, we are going to show you how the Woolympics met the Olympics!

Mom and Dad heard that one of Mom's favorite shows, The Colbert Report, was doing a filming in Vancouver. Mom convinced Dad that they should go and then she convinced him that we should go too!

We had to get up really early to hit the road. Mom was a little nervous about crossing the border with us, but it all went well. In fact, the Canadian border patrol lady had her own husky at home!

Once we got to Vancouver, we headed straight to the park where The Colbert Report taping was supposed to take place. It was in a park and boy, the park was muddy! Steve and I got really muddy and so did Mom and Dad's shoes and pants. (So the pants could be from us stepping on them.) We had to wait for quite a while for the show to start.

Waiting...

Waiting...

And more waiting!

Finally the show started. This picture is proof that we were there because you can see the stage in the background. During this picture, Stephen Colbert was interviewing Bob Costas.

This is what we mostly did during the taping.

After the TV taping, we headed off to find the Winter Olympics flame. On the way we stopped for a family picture. Steve thinks he did a particularly good job in this picture.

We kept walking and walking, stopping for a picture along the way to document where we were.

Finally we got to the Olympic Flame. It was packed with people, so we didn't try to get too close. Tons of people asked to take our picture, including some people with Korean broadcasting badges. Maybe we are famous in Korea? Anyway, here is our picture with the torch in the background. It's hard to tell that it's on fire, but I promise, it was.

When we got back in the car to go home, boy, we were so tired. Not only did we walk around for about 6 miles, but we had to concentrate on being good for the entire day since we were surrounded by people the whole day. Now, I know you probably think we are just naturally good, and we are, but we still have to think extra hard about being good when there are so many distractions.

Thanks for sharing our Olympic fun with us. Stay tuned tomorrow for the next Woolympic fun!
Kat

Happy Valentine's Day!

2010-02-14T14:27:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentines Day! We hope you're having a great day with your Valentines. Since we can't be with our canine Valentines, we are spending the time with our human Valentines, Mom and Dad!

We have received this award from both Huffle and Phantom and Thunder. Thank you! The rules of this award are that you have to post about 10 things that make you happy and try to do one of those things today. So here is our list.
1. Walks. Now that it's not getting dark as early, we are getting more walks, so that is definitely good.
2. Kongs. We get a stuffed Kong in our crate every work day and we love it. Some mornings Steve makes Mom feel like he can't wait for her to leave. He just hangs out by the freezer, waiting for her to hand him a Kong.
3. Cuzes. When we don't get to go for walks, we usually play with our cuzes inside. Steve always has to play with a squeaky Cuz, but Kat doesn't care.
4. Laps. Wilbur loves to sleep on a lap, Dad's in particular.
5. Treats. We each have our favorite treats, but no matter which ones, they make us happy.
6. Treat balls. We got some new treat dispensing balls and we love them. Mom puts part of our supper in them so we can play with them just about every day.
7. Pellet stoves. Wilbur loves to nap in front of our pellet stove.
8. Wrestling. Nothing better than a little Siberian wrestling to pass the time.
9. Stuffies. Steve loves his beaver and Wilbur loves his kitty.
10. Friends. We all love our blogging friends!

Now we are supposed to give this award out to 10 friends, but we don't think that we can think of 10 friends that haven't gotten it! So if you haven't gotten it, please consider yourself awarded.

Woolympics Event #2

2010-02-13T21:08:00.004-08:00

It's time for the second event of the SKW Woolympics. Before we get to the event, let's give out the awards from the Sitting Pretty competition. Wilbur won the gold by a pretty big margin, even though a lot of the dogs who voted were biased against cats. It was really close for the silver, with Kat winning by one vote. Steve took home the bronze.Now for the next event. This time, the Woolympics event is Laser Chasing. We apologize for the blurriness of parts of the video. The camera was focusing on the laser dot instead of on the competitor.

Please place your vote for the best in the poll on our sidebar. The athlete with the most votes will get the gold, second most will get the silver, and then the other will get the bronze. (Pretty obvious.)

Look what I have to put up with

2010-02-13T08:35:00.001-08:00

This is an example of what my mom thinks is funny.

She is nuts.

Meow,
Wilbur

This does not make me happy

2010-02-12T08:38:00.003-08:00

While Steve was getting pictures off the camera from his training, I found these pictures of what my parents were doing while Steve and I were on vacation.

It must have been really scary because my dad almost got hit by an airplane.

And I guess they went to outer space.

But what I found most disturbing was this picture of my mom.

Did you see where she was? She was in a winter wonderland!! So apparently, despite all the pouting I have done about a snowless winter, Mom and Dad decided that it would be a good idea to leave us at home to go play in the snow. I am really disturbed by this. I'm considering running away to go live with a nice family on the east coast.

Kat

Yes, as a matter of fact, we are trained!

2010-02-11T19:46:00.002-08:00

This video makes Dad think we are totally untrained. He's so silly.

Steve

Another feather in my cap

2010-02-10T19:30:00.004-08:00

Back in December I told you about how I am taking my mom to training. I just passed my second mom-training class and I got another certificate. I think Mom’s biggest achievement this course was perfecting the art of giving me treats when I come when she calls me. She’s really good at it and she gets really excited when she gets to give me a treat. It’s nice to see that I have trained such enthusiasm into her.

Here is a video of me getting my certificate.

And here I am posing with my certificate.

I am going to take my canine good citizen test in April after my last phase of training Mom. If I can just get Mom to behave correctly for the test, I will have my first official title!

Tomorrow I will post a video that makes Dad say "and you call these dogs trained?"

Steve

Our vacation

2010-02-04T18:42:00.000-08:00

We are working on a video for our next installment of the SKW Woolympics and also tabulating the results from the Sitting Pretty Event. Our work has been delayed because we went on vacation. Mom and Dad went somewhere (not important) and Kat and I went to our favorite home away from home, Roscoe’s Ranch! (Wilbur had to stay home and defend the homestead.)

We had a pretty good time at Roscoe’s. We like it there because we get off leash play time throughout the day. It gives us a chance to do a little bit of this:

And a little bit of that:

And a whole lot of this:

After we get tired of wrestling, running, and sniffing, we even take time to look cute.
Then Roscoe’s Ranch emails the pictures to Mom so she can see that we are still as fluffy as when she left us. That makes her feel good while she is away from us.

This time at Roscoe’s, we tore up our pet cot after we got our bath. My lips are sealed as to who might have done it, but I will point out that it had a hole dug in it and we all know who is the digger in this house. If the paw is clean, it wasn’t me!
Steve

Woolympics - SKW Style

2010-01-24T20:58:00.003-08:00

I know we've been gone for a while. Mom hasn't thought we had very good blogging material, however, we haven't been sitting around doing nothing. We've learned a new trick and with the Winter Olympics coming up just a couple hours from us, we decided to do our own events around the house. You, our readers, will decide who gets the Gold, Silver, and Bronze. Since there is just the three of us, at least we each get a medal!

Here is our first installment of our Woolympics. Leave your picks in the comments!

Kat

Katherine Olivia, Expert Tiler

2010-01-05T19:36:00.000-08:00

You might remember last year when Steve and I opened S&K Plumbing Repair. You might also remember what happened when my dad didn’t hire us to do the repair. Well, over the holiday break, Dad and I tiled the bathroom to replace the flooring that was ruined because Steve and I were not allowed to work our magic.

First Dad and I had to work on figuring out how to position the tiles.
Once we thought we had it figured out, we had to get approval from the boss (Mom), so we took a break while waiting on her.

Here’s how the floor looked when we were finished.

Here’s what Steve did while Dad and I were working.

The moral of the story is that if you need some tiling done, call Dad and me. Not Steve.

Kat

Christmas Pictures

2009-12-29T21:00:00.000-08:00

Here are some pictures from our Christmas. Somehow Mom managed not to get a good one of Steve, so I didn’t crop him out of the picture of Dad and me.

Here’s our Christmas “tree”. We don’t have room for a tree in our house, plus Mom is afraid we might break some ornaments because Wilbur broke some of the ones from when Mom was a baby back when Wilbur was an only cat and so Mom thinks with two dogs added, it would be disaster for the ornaments. So we just decorate the fireplace. It works out better because Santa doesn’t have to go as far when he comes down the chimney.

The computer is out because we Skyped with our Missouri grandparents and Aunt Kari and Uncle Joe for opening presents.

Mom thought this was a good picture of Dad and me when she looked at it in the camera, but upon closer inspection, I look mad and Dad looks out of it.

Mom put some jingle bells on Wilbur, which he didn’t appreciate. I think she would have left them on longer except that Steve and I got really interested in him with his bells, so in the interest of safety, Mom took them off.

And that’s all the pictures that we have. Mom was a real slacker this year in the picture department. Steve and I got new collars from Santa and also a Wholesome Hide in our stockings. Wilbur got some salmon snacks and greenies from Santa. We also got some treats from our Texas grandparents, some toys from our Missouri grandparents and a picture frame from Aunt Kari and Uncle Joe that has our names carved in it (Wilbur’s name too). Mom and Dad got stuff but it’s not important.

We hope Santa made all your dreams come true!
Kat

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-25T06:55:00.002-08:00

We hope you have a great holiday!
Steve, Kat, Wilbur, and humans

Santa Parade

2009-12-23T18:38:00.001-08:00

Since it’s just a couple days until Christmas, I thought I’d share the video of when we went to the Santa parade a couple weeks ago. It was very interesting as you can see in the video.

After the Santa Parade, we walked around to see the carolers and be admired. Santa specifically waved at me, so I’m pretty sure that means I’m going to get something good for Christmas. Wilbur didn’t even go to the Santa Parade, so he probably will get a lump of coal.

Kat

PS. Happy Anniversary to our Missouri grandparents! They have been married for 36 years! I don’t even want to know how many dog years that is.

Comfy, cozy

2009-12-22T19:05:00.001-08:00

Dad’s lap can be a pretty nice spot for sleeping.
Now if I could just get the furry beasts to go away.

I recommend you all go find a nice lap to curl up on soon, but try to keep it all to yourself.
Meow,
Wilbur

I don't get the message

2009-12-21T19:02:00.000-08:00

What do you think Dad is trying to say here? The Macbook is stinky?
Let me know if you can interpret this human sign language.
Kat

Happy Graduation to me!

2009-12-15T20:19:00.000-08:00

I’ve been taking Mom to school the past month or so. I’m learning how to train her and when I’m done, I will get my Canine Good Citizen certificate. That’s the certificate that the AKC gives out to dogs who learn how to train their humans to behave properly when they are on leash and out in public with their dogs. Mom has to learn to politely greet strangers while I sit and look handsome and how to stand still while I get brushed and stuff like that. It’s really challenging for her, so to keep her mind engaged during class, I let her give me lots of treats. Our teacher gives the humans two recess breaks during class so the humans can talk to each other and rest their brains. During recess, I play with the other dogs. Even I need a break!

One dog in the class brings her whole family to class, her mom, dad, and her two human siblings. I really admire that pup for being able to train four humans at once! I have my hands full with just Mom!

We just wrapped up Part 1 of our training and we’ll get back to school after the Christmas break. Apparently I’m doing really great at training my human because I got a diploma!
I’ll keep you posted on school and let you know when I finally have Mom completely trained and get my CGC certificate!

Steve

Dad's Birthday

2009-12-09T17:30:00.001-08:00

We are really far behind with blogging. Steve hasn’t been feeling very well. We don’t know what is wrong with him, but he’s just not himself. He doesn’t like to be touched and has started refusing to jump off the bed. Mom is taking him to the vet again tomorrow to see about getting x-rays of his hips and back. So instead of blogging, Mom sits around and loves on Steve and then reads her vet book to try to diagnose Steve. She thinks he has every ailment in the entire book at this point.

Anyway, last time we blogged, we said we would tell you about Dad’s birthday. We gave him a card and some Kit Kats. Earlier in the month he got a new Xbox 360 because his old one broke, so he got his present early. Dad also got this yummy looking cake from Cold Stone Creamery.

A few days before Dad’s birthday, our Texas grandma sent us some special cookies and we saved them to eat on the big day. The cookies were in this tin.

The cookies looked like this. The Texas A&M football helmet is for Steve and the orange leaf is for me. The store didn’t have any OSU helmets, but I liked the orange leaves with sparklies.
Since it was Dad’s birthday, he got to pass out the cookies.
We got nose-to-cookie and boy, they smelled yummy.
Right after that picture was taken, we got to eat the cookies and I can tell you, they tasted as good as they smelled and looked!

Dad got a new game for his Xbox 360 from our Missouri grandparents and Wilbur helped him try it out.
Note: Mom says not to look too closely at that room because it’s Dad’s man room, which he shares with Wilbur, so she lets Dad be messy up there.

So as you can see, we all helped Dad celebrate his birthday!
Kat

Black Friday Shopping

2009-11-30T19:03:00.000-08:00

Did any of you pups brave the crowds for some Black Friday shopping? We did! It was really fun. Mom forgot her camera, but Dad took this picture of us at the self checkout at Lowe’s. It’s not very good because he took it with his phone.

I can’t tell you everything we got at Lowe’s because some of it is Christmas presents, but we did get Mom a little Maglite. It was over 50% off and she’s going to carry it in her pocket when we go on walks in the dark so it’s easier to find anything we might leave behind, if you know what I mean. Anyway, Mom and Dad were so proud of how well behaved we were at Lowe’s and lots of people commented on our beauty and behavior, so I guess we were good Siberian Ambassadors.

After Lowe’s, we went to Petco. I can’t tell you what we got there either because I don’t want Wilbur to find out, but we picked out something really great for his Christmas present. We were a little crazier at Petco because it smelled so good. Dad tried to get Steve to look at the hamsters, but Mom told Dad “no!” and so he stopped. He’s pretty well trained. Dad wants to get me a hamster in a ball for Christmas, like on that movie Bolt, but Mom said no way.

Last we went to the craft store, but Steve and I had to stay in the car there. Mom didn’t end up buying anything while she was there because she couldn’t make up her mind. I’m sure I could have helped if I had been allowed inside!

I can’t wait to hear how all of you spent your black friday. What about today? Did you do any Cyber Monday shopping?

Kat

PS. We probably won’t post for a bit because Mom’s iMac is back in the shop and it’s got all the pictures that she took for Dad’s birthday on it.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2009-11-26T18:23:00.003-08:00

We’re a little late in the day with these wishes, but we mean them none-the-less. Happy Thanksgiving!! We’re having a great day and we hope you all are too.

We have a lot of things to be thankful for. First, we’re thankful for Dad. It’s his birthday. He’s 203 in dog years. We’ll tell more about celebrating his birthday on another day, but we are very thankful for him and how he cuts the turkey and sometimes drops pieces of it.

We are also thankful for Mom. She loves us a lot and buys us special things like our own individual cans of Thanksgiving Day Dinner.

We are thankful we have yummy food, like previously mentioned Thanksgiving Day Dinner, with pieces of turkey sprinkled in.

Finally, we are thankful for our home, where we can spend holiday afternoons just relaxing with our family.

We hope you have lots of things to be thankful for too.

Steve, Kat, and Wilbur

Our missing treats

2009-11-09T17:32:00.000-08:00

On Halloween, Dad took some pictures of us with all of the treats we collected while trick or treating. We got some really good stuff.

Check out these really pretty donut treats that we got to chow down on.

The problem is, we haven't gotten to eat any of the treats other than the donuts. I've looked everywhere for the treats and I can't find them. I also can't find Peter, my stuffed frog. Wilbur is acting weird. I wonder if something is up.

Steve

I stand in support too!

2009-11-07T17:23:00.003-08:00

A few days ago, Stormy of the Army of Four posted about how she supported Martha and Bailey in their protest of pictures. I think this is a very worthy cause and I support them too! Just to show my support, I am going to share some pictures that Mom tried to take of the two of us in our OSU football jerseys.

I think those make the point quite nicely.
Kat

My pirate booty

2009-11-05T17:15:00.002-08:00

A while back, I joined Maverick the Pirate's Sneaky Kitty Squadron, SKS for short. I'm Boatswain Wilbur of the Good Ship Seattle. For Halloween, Cap'n Maverick asked all SKS members to collect some pirate booty and post about it. My humans didn't take me trick or treating like the did with the furry beasts, so I just decided I would steal all the treats that the furry beasts collected.

While the humans and furry beasts were out on a walk, I went down to the living room to drag the furry beasts' treat bags upstairs. That's when I hit a snag. The boy furry beast's toy frog, Peter, jumped out of the toy box and threatened to stop me from taking the treats. I had to think fast, so I took some shoestrings and tied Peter up. That wasn't good enough though because he started ribbiting at the top of his lungs and I thought some one might hear, so I took a paper towel and gagged him. Then I picked him up and took him upstairs to my lair.

Then I went back downstairs and gathered up the treat bags. I made Peter watch while I sat in my tent, surrounded by my booty.

I haven't released Peter yet. He's sort of fun to pounce on. Also you never know when a hostage might come in handy.

Meow,
Wilbur

Steve talks back

2009-11-03T15:33:00.005-08:00

On Sunday, Mom decided we needed to take a bath. Usually when we have to take baths, Mom does all the torturing, but this time, she enlisted Dad's help, which allowed her to capture the torture on video.

Our Missouri grandparents sent Mom some money for her birthday back in August and she used it to buy a blower to torture us! Can you believe it? She would rather buy a torture device than new clothes or shoes. Something is wrong with her. She used the excuse about how the blower gets my fur out better than a brush. Whatever.

Steve

Own your very own piece of history!

2009-11-02T12:14:00.003-08:00

How many times have you thought, "I love Steve and I wish I could own something he has worn"? If you answered "every day", and I'm sure you did, then I have a great deal for you! One of our favorite charities, Save Our Siberians, is having an online auction right now and we donated an item that I have worn! That's right, an Easy Walk Harness. I wore it one time and it was terrible. Despite how bad it was, I still recommend that you all rush out and bid on the harness. You shouldn't wear it though because you don't want to ruin it, as it's a historical artifact . Just put it on your shelf, where every one can admire it. If one of our blog friends wins the harness, I'll even include a personalized, pawtographed picture of me, suitable for framing and hanging in your crate.

The auction runs from now until November 8th. There are all sorts of great things, so head on over and do a little Christmas shopping!
Steve

PS. If you do bid on and win the harness, please let me know so I can include the picture.

Trick or Treat!

2009-10-31T13:33:00.003-07:00

Happy Halloween!!

I hope you're all having a great Halloween. We're getting ready to nap here. Mom is talking about giving us baths, but I bet she can't if we are sleeping, right?

Last night we dressed up and went trick or treating. It was really fun. The whole family dressed up as football players. Mom and I were Oklahoma State Cowboys and Steve and Dad were Texas A&M Aggies.

First we stopped at Paddywack and picked up our treat bags and a stack of clues. Then we had to figure out the clues and go to the store that matched the clue to get our treat. You can see in this picture that we were working hard to figure out the clues.

We walked all over the Town Center, collecting treats. Luckily we let Mom and Dad carry our treat bags so we could keep an eye on all the other dogs to see if anypup had the same costume (they didn't).

We even got to go into some stores we've never been in before, like a real estate business and a children's clothing store. For some reason, Mom made us stay outside with Dad at the pottery place and at the place with all the glass shelves.

The very last clue led us to a stop where there was coffee, cider, and donuts for the humans and a lady with a silver tray full of treats for Steve and me. Steve got so excited every time the lady with the silver tray came near him. She had hot dogs with cheese!

We were pretty tired.

Right before we left, I cuddled up to Mom.

And Steve gave Dad a happy smile.

Then we ran all the way back to the car because it started raining. We got done trick or treating just in time!

I hope you all have as good of a Halloween as we have!
Kat

My new bench

2009-10-29T13:24:00.000-07:00

Huffle has a new deck and a new bench to lay on, so I commanded my humans to get me one too. I didn't get a new deck, but I did get a bench. Here's the best picture of me on it that my mom could get. She kept sitting me on top of the bench and I kept jumping off, so we compromised on this picture.

Then I let her take this picture of me on the rocks.

I was searching for any bugs that needed to be chased. After that, I was sleepy, so I decided to take a nap.

Meow,
Wilbur

Ps. Here's a better picture of my bench.

Steve hearts ice cream

2009-10-27T05:03:00.000-07:00

This video was taken on our birthday. Dad bought us ice cream cones from McDonalds and the cones were in the freezer. I knew they were there and then Dad started torturing me! It was so terrible.

Luckily, after all the torture, I did get my ice cream.
Steve

Success!

2009-10-25T22:41:00.005-07:00

Did all of you see Phantom and Thunder's post last week about the treats their mom brought them from California? I couldn't believe that their mom was so nice to go all the way to California to get them some Trader Joe's treats. We have several Trader Joe's within a few miles of our house, yet our mom has never gotten anything for us from there. I decided to have a talk with Mom on Saturday about it. The talk went something like this:

Me: Mom, how come you never buy me any treats from Trader Joe's? Do you not love me as much as Phantom and Thunder's mom loves them?
Mom: I'm sure I love you just as much as their mom loves them, but don't you think you have enough treats?
Me: No. Asking me if I have enough treats is like me asking you if you have enough shoes.
Mom: Very clever argument, Steve.

So that night, we all went to Trader Joe's. Kat and I stayed in the car, but when Mom and Dad got back in the car, I made sure there were some treats in the bag. Here they are!

We got the same kind that Phantom and Thunder had since they said the treats were tasty. Kat and I could barely sit still while we were waiting to try them.

Here we are eating the treats. Each stick is scored so they break easily and for some reason, Mom thinks that means that we should each only get half a stick instead of a stick each. I don't know where she comes up with these silly ideas.

After the taste testing, we have to agree with Phantom and Thunder. Those were some tasty treats! Kat and I each gave them a high five.

If you have a Trader Joe's near you, send your mom out to get you some treats!
Steve

Presents from Grandma

2009-10-22T10:20:00.003-07:00

We got a big box yesterday from our Texas grandma. It contained the good, the bad, and the ugly.

The Good:
She sent us a huge bag of Bacon and Cheese treats. Delicious! As Dad always says, everything is better with bacon and cheese. I'm keeping a close eye on Dad though because look how excited he was about the treats. I think he might try to eat one.

I was pretty excited too.

The Bad:
Wilbur got something too. He really likes these Feline Greenies. Normally he doesn't like crunchy treats, but he goes crazy for these. As you can tell by Dad's face, Dad is just faking excitement for Wilbur's stuff, unlike the real excitement he had for the bacon and cheese treats.

The Ugly:
Texas Grandma sent these headbands for us. I don't know why Dad looks happy in this picture.

Mom bribed us with treats to sit still for a picture. I sat still, but I would not look happy.

The really ugly comes from Kat. As soon as she put on the devil horn headband, the camera went crazy and made her eyes look evil. Mom couldn't even fix them with iPhoto. Apparently the devil horn headband turns you into a little devil while you wear it.

We give a big "Thanks Y'all" to our Texas grandparents for all of our presents, except the headbands. Mom and Dad think they are hilarious, but Kat and I don't find them funny at all.
Steve

Our birthday cookies

2009-10-21T18:50:00.002-07:00

For our birthday last week, we each got giant Happy Hearts cookies. They were very delicious. Steve got his first because he can't sit still for pictures if I already have a cookie.

Next it was my turn to have a cookies. I was nice to Mom so I sat pretty so she could get a good picture of the cookie. Wilbur had jumped on the cookie earlier and broke the corner.

After Mom got her picture, I gently took the cookie.

We got to eat the cookies on the bed, but don't worry about the crumbs. We are very good vacuum cleaners.

Kat

We're Three!

2009-10-14T00:01:00.000-07:00

Today is our third birthday! We're pretty excited. Tonight Mom is going to let us have our birthday Happy Hearts cookies and Dad is going to pick us each up McDonalds ice cream cones on his way home from work. Mom says we even have some presents!

Speaking of presents, the first birthday present we received was from two of our bestest buds, Phantom and Thunder. They sent us this really cute card, which is one of Jack's mom's cards. It's pretty perfect for us as the puppy on the front looks sort of like Kat!

Phantom and Thunder also sent us a gift certificate for Happy Hearts cookies! Isn't that just the most perfect present? As you can see in this picture, Steve has laid claim to the gift certificate. If paw placement is any indication, Steve will be eating all of the cookies and Kat will be lucky to get a small portion. (We hope the Happy Hearts team will accept a wrinkly gift certificate. We were supposed to sit and keep our paws off of it, but Steve couldn't help himself.)

Thanks so much Phantom and Thunder! (Kat says especially you, Thunder.) We are really honored that you thought of us on our birthday. Hey Thunder, how's life being three? Any tips?

Steve and Kat

PS. Happy Birthday to our Missouri grandpa too! Isn't it cool that we share a birthday with our grandpa?

A friendly wager

2009-10-07T11:47:00.003-07:00

During the first college football game of this season, Kat and Mom's Oklahoma State University Cowboys were playing Sitka and Cornelia Marie's University of Georgia Bulldogs. After studying the legality of sports betting, we determined that dogs are allowed to bet on sporting events, so we made a wager with Sitka and Cornelia Marie that if the Cowboys won, they would buy us an order of Happy Hearts and if the Bulldogs won, we would buy an order for them.

During the first part of the game, things were not looking that great for the Cowboys. Kat was pretty depressed. At half-time, Kat barked a lot at the TV and apparently the Cowboys received the message because they came out strong in the second half and won the game. Kat was so excited for her team and I was so excited for some Happy Hearts!

Our cookies arrived recently and boy, was I glad!

We ordered some of the new summer flavors. Watermelon and ginger. I have to say I give them both a big paws up.

Mom tried to get some good pictures of me eating, but you can see how well that worked.

She did get a good picture of Kat eating one of the squirrels.

I should also mention that with this order, I have become an official Happy Hearts taste tester. I am really excited to be able to be recognized in an official capacity for my favorite hobby -- eating!

So I have to give a big thanks to Sitka and Cornelia Marie for the cookies, Happy Hearts for the cookies too, the Cowboys for winning the game, and to Kat for being a fan of the Cowboys. It is handy to have a sister who's a fan of a good football team. Dad and I are in for a depressing season, I'm afraid.
Steve

Face Plant

2009-10-01T19:24:00.001-07:00

The other day, I came inside looking like this.

Dad thought I had been digging, but my paws were clean. What really happened is that it had been raining, Steve's paws were muddy, and we started wrestling. I took a paw to the face and that's what happened.

Want a closer look? Just stare into my eyes.

Kat

Dr. Steve's latest

2009-09-29T19:40:00.004-07:00

First I want to say that we are thinking about our friend, Jack, and his family as they mourn the loss of the lovely Star. Star's brother Sherman was the one of the first blogging dogs we knew who passed away and we remember Mom shedding tears over him and how his mom described the situtation. We feel so fortunate to be part of the Dogs with Blogs community and that you all share your stories with us and we can get to know you all, in happy and sad times. Good-bye Star, we hope you and Sherman are playing zoomies once again.

Stella wrote to me recently, on behalf of the Texas Happy Heelers. Here's what the Happy Heelers had told Stella's feline sis, Ali Z:

That Dr. Steve must really be good if he can fix the pest.. She is always biting at our heels and doing fly-byes.. She just doesn't listen to Mom, you think it might have something to do with her being deaf? She doesn't watch the signs.. We are hoping she will grow out of this pest-ism..

Big Sloppy KissesGus, Louie and Callie

Well, Gus, Louie, and Callie, I really am good. However, I don't think there is anything wrong with Callie. She sounds totally Siberian to me. Now, I understand that she's not actually a Siberian, but I have checked the Dogs Rule Book and I don't see anything in there about dogs not being able to act like other breeds. So I think Callie should continue her Siberian ways. In fact, she should be rewarded for them since she's having to try so hard to imitate a breed she is not. Way to go, Callie!

I must apologize for our lack of blogging lately. Mom and Dad are finally done with all of the work in the backyard, so I'm hoping that we can get back on track with our blogging. We will also have to catch up with reading all of your blogs too!

Dr. Steve

Our new fence

2009-09-15T11:03:00.002-07:00

Our new fence is complete now, so we can play off leash in the yard. As you can see in this picture, we took full advantage of it.

Check out Kat's moves here. She's on one leg!

Here's a picture showing more of our fence.

Mom and Dad are going to put some watersealant on the fence this weekend. It's always wet here in Seattle, so they want to protect the fence investment. Then they have to put down some mulch and our yard project will finally be done!

Steve

Mom's Pet Peeve = My New Bed

2009-09-11T11:39:00.002-07:00

Dad does something that annoys Mom. When he has clothes that he's worn, but aren't dirty enough to be washed, instead of putting them away, he piles them on top of the chest-of-drawers. It drives Mom crazy. I have found that I can get pretty comfy on top of his clothes.

I hope he doesn't mind a little fur.

Meow,
Wilbur

Dirty Face

2009-09-09T11:32:00.003-07:00

Over the weekend before the grass went in, Dad found me outside looking like this.

At first, he started to get mad because he thought I had been digging. Then he noticed my paws were all clean.

I had just been pushing my nose throught the dirt. The landscapers brought in some new dirt for Mom to plant flowers in and it wasn't packed down, so I thought maybe I could do some work of my own! I gave Dad an annoyed look to show that I wasn't happy about being wrongly accused.

Kat

Our new yard

2009-09-07T11:24:00.002-07:00

We've shown you over the past few months how ugly and brown our yard was. That's right, WAS! We now have grass! It's very exciting and Kat and I were happy to check it out last week.

Kat thought the new grass smelled pretty good.

Here we are checking out the sprinkler and also saying good-bye to the old fence.

The day after these pictures were taken, the fence was torn down. The new fence is almost done, but not completely, so we have to go outside on leashes.

I'll share pictures of the new fence soon.
Steve

Our Photography Session

2009-09-03T20:04:00.005-07:00

Back in June, we went to a real photographer to get our pictures taken. We've shared these pictures with several people already, but in case you haven't seen them, here's the slideshow. (Photographs by Alyssa Rose Photography.)

Mom loves all the pictures and could hardly decide what to order. We now have an entire wall devoted to us!

We're pretty sure this means she loves us more than Wilbur.
Steve and Kat

New Trick - Gimme 10!

2009-09-01T14:00:00.003-07:00

Kat and I have learned a new trick. It's a variation of shake and high 5. Mom calls it "Gimme 10". We were nice enough to perform the trick for the camera the other day, but I think the first part of the video will show that I am a Siberian through-and-through and have some trick of my own up my paw.

Steve

Sprinkler System Tester

2009-08-30T14:57:00.001-07:00

The new grass will be installed on Tuesday, so today Mom and Dad have been testing out the new "sprinkler system" to make sure that we'll have good coverage for watering the yard. I think the following video will demonstrate what a good helper I am.

Working dogs have to keep busy, right?

Steve

Heavy Lifting

2009-08-27T07:36:00.003-07:00

Look what showed up in our front yard. (We wouldn't sit the right direction for the camera, but at least we're sitting, right?)

Mom and Dad wouldn't let us dig in this huge mound of dirt, which seems so wrong. Instead, this machine was allowed to carry the dirt from the front to the back and spread it around. The machine is called a Dingo and I'm pretty sure it's related to the machine that Huffle found in her garage a few weeks ago. Unfortunately, Huffle, the Dingo did not bring your parsley pot to our house.

We will keep you posted on the hard work that Mr. Dingo is doing in the yard.
Steve and Kat

I'm the King of the World!

2009-08-24T07:52:00.003-07:00

Along with the destruction of the Siberian Clubhouse, Mom and Dad have been spending every free moment out in the backyard working, working, working. I seem them pushing the wheelbarrow all over, so that gave me an idea.

Hey, Mom, can you give me a ride here so I can pretend that I'm in the movie Titanic, at the front of the boat?

She said that she couldn't even push the wheelbarrow full of rocks, much less the addition of me on top of the rocks.

I tried looking cuter, but that still didn't get me anywhere.

I guess with humans, you have to do all the work yourself. Never stop pulling, my friends, otherwise the other end of the leash might not go anywhere!
Steve

What was under the clubhouse

2009-08-23T11:38:00.003-07:00

Previously on Washington Woos:
Gasp! The Siberian Clubhouse was torn down and fed to an evil hungry buzzard. Readers were outraged. Amici, in particular said, "We thought the clubhouse was so cool. Did Kat and Steve just not use it enough??". What will happen? Why was the Clubhouse destroyed?

Now on Washington Woos:
Last month we showed you how we had been trying to dig under the clubhouse. The fact that we were intently trying to get under the clubhouse, combined with the fact that Mom found three dead baby mice in the yard, made Mom think that there was a mice nest under the clubhouse. Since the only time we ever went into the clubhouse was to chase Wilbur into a corner, Dad decided the clubhouse had to go.

What's interesting is that when Dad finished tearing out the entire clubhouse, guess what he found under it? A really cool Scooby Doo ball! Not a single mouse. So now Mom and Dad have no idea where the baby mice are coming from, but Mom says as long as they are just in the yard, she guesses she won't worry too much about it.

Now about that Scooby Doo ball. It's the most fun ever! It doesn't even squeak, but I love it to pieces. Mom and I played a little Scooby Ball in the yard.

It's just so fun to pounce on!

So there you have it, the story of the Siberian Clubhouse. To be honest, I haven't missed it. Now I have more room to get up some really fast zoomies along the back fence and I have a new Scooby Doo ball.
Kat

PS. Speaking of Amici, he's going to get his new human puppy today or tomorrow, so we want to wish him and his family the best! We're sure Amici will make the best big brother any human's ever had.

RIP Clubhouse

2009-08-22T19:12:00.004-07:00

Remember our cool Siberian Clubhouse that we posted about when we first moved into our Seattle house? This is all that remains of it.

That's right, nothing! Here are all the bits and pieces of clubhouse that still are around, but they just don't have the same soul as when the pieces were in their former clubhouse shape.

Wondering what happened to the clubhouse? Well, this thing showed up and ate it.

Apparently the buzzard really was very hungry to eat an entire clubhouse. And you know what else? Mom and Dad fed it. That's right, they put pieces of the clubhouse into the buzzard and those pieces were never heard from again.

What should we do about it?
Steve and Kat

Sleeping habits

2009-08-18T18:56:00.002-07:00

The other morning, Mom came into the bedroom to get dressed for work and here's what she discovered (excuse the unmade bed).

Kat, cuddling with her ball:

Me, doing my favorite legs hanging over the edge:

Wilbur, being whatever cats are:

That's right, we were all sleeping in harmony.

We better not let that happen again.
Steve

A prescription for Star and Jack

2009-08-15T09:25:00.004-07:00

Star and Jack sent me a note yesterday asking for help:

Dear Dr. Steve,

Star & I are not feeling too well. Mom says our poo isn't right, & we're not eating & just kinda tired. She hauled me to the v-e-t. (I had to go for shots anyway). We think we should consult with woo about this, after all, who knows more about sibes than another sibe?

Woos & a-roos,
Star & Jack a-roo

Since they have already been to the vet, I decided to just let their vet handle the physical aspect of their ailments and I would handle the psychological aspects. As some of you know, Star's boyfriend and Jack's best friend, Moon, moved away to Pennsylvania and now can't come over to Star and Jack's house to play. In my Siberian opinion, their symptoms tell me that they are depressed and missing Moon lots and lots. So to help Star and Jack feel better, I recommend that their humans give them even more love and attention than they already do give them. I recommend that the humans share their snacks (I included examples of some of my current favorites), take them for lots of walks, and let them play with stuffies more (especially Jack-a-roo).

Star and Jack, I sure hope you start to feel better soon. It's no fun being lonely, but it is sweet that you loved Moon so much.

Until next time, stay healthy,

Dr. Steve

Birthday Cake

2009-08-11T19:41:00.002-07:00

Last week when we posted about Mom's birthday, several of you left comments about whether or not we were going to get any cake. Mom's favorite cake is chocolate, so we didn't think things looked good for our cake chances. This is the cake that Dad bought for Mom:

Once we saw the cake, we were almost positive that we weren't going to get any. It was covered with chocolate!

Here's what the inside looked like:

Guess what though? We got some cake! Mom is so well trained that she cut a slice of cake for us, then removed all the chocolate parts!

Here we are waiting for our slices. (Excuse our eyes, the flash does that to us. We weren't really sleeping.)

After waiting nicely, Mom said we could dig in.

The cake was delicious! The only thing missing was some ice cream.

Steve and Kat

The Contest Results

2009-08-09T13:25:00.000-07:00

Thanks to all you pups who voted for us in the Cutest Dog Contest! Steve was awarded Most Handsome and Kat was runner-up in the Cutest Purebred category. Mom picked up our prizes the other day and here's a video of us opening everything.

Note: This is the first time Dad used the video camera. He's a little zoom crazy!

Steve and Kat

World Cat Day

2009-08-08T11:41:00.003-07:00

It's World Cat Day, so without further ado, I give you me!

Curled up on my mom's lap:

Hiding in my tunnel:

And chilling outside:

Despite what I've heard some of you claim, it is not World Kat Day, so don't even ask for pictures of the girl furry beast. (I gave you her in the background of the first picture.)

Meow,
Wilbur

Mom's Birthday Present

2009-08-06T11:18:00.002-07:00

A while back we told you that Dad gave Mom a video camera for her birthday. It was actually an early present since her birthday was yesterday. As a gift to Mom, I decided to put on a really good show for the camera with my new toy.

Sorry the video is so long. Mom couldn't decide what to cut out to make it shorter. She thinks I'm so cute and would hate to deprive my fans of my cuteness.
Steve

A mystery...

2009-08-05T00:08:00.002-07:00

Do any of you know this baby?

A couple other clues, here's some events that have happened on August 5th in the past.Something is going on around here...

Steve & Kat
PS. We'll return to our regularly furry programming next time.

Eating Contest

2009-07-31T07:44:00.003-07:00

Last weekend, Mom took me to the Go Dog Go festival in Kirkland, Washington. Kat stayed home with Dad, so it was pretty exciting to go somewhere, just Mom and me.

There were dogs doing cool tricks with Frisbees. I don't play with Frisbees, but I did sit for a photo in front of the field where the Disc Dogs were doing their tricks.

There were lots of booths set up and several people gave me treats, which I always appreciate. Mom and I entered a raffle to win some cool gift baskets, but we didn't win. (I'm okay with that because a lot of the prizes were from grooming places.)

There were several contests going on throughout the day. Mom entered me in the Clean Your Plate contest. The goal was to be the first pup to finish an entire serving of canned food. Mom wasn't paying attention when she entered me and then when the contest started, she realized I had been put in the 55+ pound weight class, even though I'm just 50 pounds. Mom was disappointed that she didn't get me in the correct category because there were only 3 dogs in the category I should have been in, but about 15 dogs in the 55+ category and some were huge! I was glad I was in the 55+ category because that meant the serving was bigger. I mean, look at these plates!

I didn't win the contest, but I did clean my plate. Mom didn't get any pictures of me eating because she was too busy making sure I just ate my food and didn't bother any other dogs who were trying to eat their food. Here's a picture of me in front of the contest stage. Don't I look full?

On our way out of the festival, we stopped at a booth that had a big pool with balls in it. The goal was for pups to bob for a ball and then you could take the ball home with you. I just stood in the pool, but the people let Mom bob for the ball and we gave it to Kat when we got home. She loves her new ball and was happy we didn't forget about her on our adventure.
Steve

Get out there and VOTE!

2009-07-29T07:23:00.005-07:00

Just three days remain to cast your vote for us! Send an email to dogs@artisphotography.com with your pics. You can vote for both of us in the same email. Just include the category and our names.

You can vote once per email address, so if you haven't voted, please do so!

Kat is entered in Cutest Purebred. (1st page, 3rd row, 4th picture)

Steve is in Most Handsome. (1st page, 3rd row, 5th picture)

Thanks for your support pups!

Mom's new torture device

2009-07-25T17:09:00.003-07:00

A couple weeks ago, Mom and Dad were out shopping and found a great deal on a video camera. Mom had been wanting one for a while, so Dad bought it for her (since her birthday is coming up). So as soon as they got home, Mom rushed to charge the battery so she could do some filming. Steve and I were nice enough to perform for her. She got a whole 90 seconds of video that first day! We sure were tired after that!

Kat