Gotta love places that not only guarantee their products, but offer and honor their money-back policy.

www.orvis.com  has their Toughchew Dog beds http://www.orvis.com/store/product_choice.asp?dir_id=1633&Group_ID=1634&cat_id=5665&subcat_id=7406&pf_id=10YT  and they will readily admit that it may not hold up to every dog.   If you buy this item and your dog can destroy it, they'll refund what you paid for the bed....no questions, no hassles, no worries.

How do I know this?

Because after just 2 hours of having a ToughChew, my beast had managed to destroy the zipper on the cover.

A few hours later, I looked out the window and saw this......

See what he's standing on?   That's the inner lining with lots of fluffy stuffing.   The red fabric is what's left of the outer cover.   And that thing in his mouth?   It's the ToughChew  Ring .....minus a few pieces.

We did indeed get snow.    And wind.     Snow + wind = drifting.      Yea, drifting isn't quite so bad for those who live in town, but out here it's a very different story.    In our back yard, there are areas where we can still see the grass with just a light covering a snow on it.......right next to the areas where the snow is about a foot or so deep.

The girls were dismissed from school early on Thursday.

They wanted to play in the snow.

We could only find two of the snowsuits at the big house.

We could find NONE of the boots.   Not.a.single.one.

So yesterday afternoon I ventured out (giving the road crews plenty of time to clear the roads) to get snow gear for S and C, and find boots for all.

Apparently everyone else had already done that.    I bought the only remaining pair of boots in child's size 11 for my little Tinkerbell.    Apparently size 13 isn't as popular, as there were three pair left in that size.    There was nothing in size 1 or 2 for my other girls.....not.a.single.boot.

Hubby had investment club in the other town last evening, so I instructed him to please stop somewhere and see about getting boots.    He's such a goof.....he was on the west side, where there's a lot of stores, but he headed to the east end and aimed for farm-style stores and walmart.    There were no kid snow boots to be found .    He then ventured over to kmart and bought the last pair of size 1's for Demon and one of three remaining pairs for S.

So we have snow boots and enough gear for all.    Yaay!

Oh, wait.   Now I've gotta go to the big house and dig for the snow boots for Mr. Monkey Boy.

It's been a week of antibiotics and I'm much better.     Sheesh, I should check this thing more often, huh?

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Last weekend was busy busy busy.   My eldest turned 8  years old.   We did the cupcake thing at school on Friday; a Build-A-Bear party with out-of-town friends on Saturday; and a family party gathering on Sunday.     *whew*  what a weekend!

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A few family members need specific items, prices, and a where-to-buy list in order to purchase gifts for the children.   So I did that.    One couple then proceeded to shop at a different store (that was much further away from their house ) and when they couldn't find the items listed at TRU, they then went to TRU a week later.   And apparently they couldn't find all but one of the items on Monkey Boy's list.   So they appealed to me....er, rather they TOLD me....to find those items, buy them, drive 35 miles to their house, leave said items on their doorstep, and they'd pay me back.  

Yeah, I've got lots of time to go to that.

The stinking TRU is not even a mile from their house, but yet it's 35 miles from mine.

How convenient!!

So yesterday I was in another town, stumbled upon two of the items I was told to purchase, and tossed them into my cart.   But I called the DD's (as they are fondly referred to within our family) to verify the items before purchase.    D1 calls me back a few hours later to inform me that she already bought those items on Monday.

Okay.   So now not only did I go out of my way to look for said items and purchase them, I've now got to return them.    It might not be such a big deal, but it kinda frosts my cookies that the DD's told ME to get those items.   Wouldn't it make sense that if you dumped a task onto somebody but then later decided to do it yourself that maybe you would inform the other person?   And maybe that information should occur kinda timely instead of three days later?   

whatever

Oh, and when they were apparently shopping at another store (the one much further away that's not TRU), they didn't even bother looking for 3 other items.....the items I told them WERE at that store.    So they looked at TRU for those 3 and couldn't find them.    Well, duh.

Mind you, I wrote out a specific list.   Item name, a description, price, where it buy (right down to which aisle at the store), and even included a photo of each item.    Maybe I don't understand.  No wait, I really don't understand, how hard it is to shop when practically everything's done but the actual buying.   And then when they expect someone else to do the actual buying, they still manage to screw it up.

No, I'm not angry or mad.....a little put-out....but then again, this situation just illustrates exactly how comical life is with these two

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I've been setting up wrapping gifts at the big house.   I've about gotten everything purchase thus far wrapped....except I ran out of wrapping paper and had to buy more yesterday.     Yes, it's so totally against everything I've done for years...buying holiday wrap BEFORE the after-christmas sales.     And there's plenty of wrap I bought last year....at 75% off....but it's completely blocked in by the contents of another room.   *sigh*  I'm really hoping hubby can spend more time over there sorting stuff out and putting it all away in the basement and storeroom.

Anyway, back to my original thought.....it's pretty nice to be able to spread everything out, sort gifts by person, set up a table as a wrap station, and get to work.   All without worry of little eyes prying, or little fingers getting in the way, or little beings seeing things they shouldn't see just yet.     Nope, it was pretty nice knowing I didn't have stuff things away before they could be see, be all kinds of sneaky, and even rush to wrap a few things here and there.

Okay.   I'll admit it.   No point in denying it any longer.

I'm sick.

My poor sinuses are doing a constant ache.

My poor lungs are coughing up nasty crap.

I'm running a slight fever.

My doc better give me some good meds......or else I'll breathe on him!

A note from Tufan to his friend Buddy....

Dear Buddy,

Most of my fence is metal.   And yes, I've tried chewing on it but I just can't seem to chew through.   The people say something about it being strong enough to hold cattle.  I've seen some of those critters and figured there's no way I can chew through something that'll hold those lumbering beasts.

Digging...I've been doing that too.    The woman was complaining last week because she was walking across the yard and kept stepping into holes.  As if it's a bad thing to have no less than 20 holes scattered here and there around the yard!

The people have been giving me all kinds of toys and things to chew on.   I'm managing to destroy a doggie ball in less than a day.   The big booda knot things take me a while to shred.   The woman even brought home a Jolly Ball, saying something about it being for horses and something else about me resembling a horse.    Anyway, I chewed the handle off that...took me a few days but I did it.  Now I've got a nice ball to chase around.  

Those people have been afraid to say anything for fear of jinxing themselves, but they may actually have fixed that fence so I can't escape.  I've now been contained  since Tuesday morning.   I'm sure to let them know how unhappy I am about it....I do lots of whining and howling whenever they walk around outside.   The woman came out to play for a while, but she had  a yummy basted rawhide in her coat pocket.....rawhide chewing outranks loving and playing any day of the week LOL

Update from Tufan, the prisoner....

After my escape yesterday afternoon, the people put me in the garage while they made more repairs to my fence.   Then because they didn't trust me, I was locked away in my house for the night.   Boy, was I not happy about that.   But I let the people know....hey, a dog's gotta whine and howl now and then.    And this morning I was released from my prison of warm comfiness.     I ran and jumped and ran and jumped and ran.    The man stood in my yard and watched my every move, so I had to be pretty careful about not trying to worm my way under any part of the fence.    I'm afraid if I'd tried that he would have put me back in the house.

So I spent nearly an hour sniffing all of my yard.   That evil kitty, Frell, had been in my yard and I had to pee on every spot where I could sniff that he'd even just walked on.  It took a while, but I think I've managed to cover all scent of that feline menace.    And it kept the man from thinking I'd be testing the fence.

So the people finally went into the house.

And I paced the fence, trying to stick my big bone-head anywhere along it to see if there's a weak spot where I can wedge my body under and be free.

But I got my head stuck.

I whined, whimpered, and yelped.

And those people stood outside and laughed for a minute before they helped me.   Can you believe that??!!       They laughed and said something about maybe I'd learn to not do stuff like that.    shyeah right!

For now, I'm still in my yard.   Give me a day and I'm sure I'll work a spot loose enough for me to escape

Another note from Tufan, the amazing disappearing dog......

I'm a smart one, I am.   The people worked pretty hard all day Saturday to catch me every time I ran away.   Then they'd lock me away in my extra large dog house (hey, I could have quite the dog party in there...it's really quite roomy and spacious) or in the garage (but those people were a-thinking and put up all the things I would have loved to shred to pieces) while they worked away at trying to make my yard secure.   They sure thought they had it, though.   And I managed to behave myself all day Sunday and about half of Monday, making them think they really had me secured.   But then on Monday afternoon I just couldn't help myself anymore.   I'd paced the fence, stuck my head thru here and there, and finally I located the weak spots.    Sure I had to try a few different areas before I was finally able to find a place where I could stretch enough slack in the fence, use my big bone-head to wedge the fence up, and squeeze my body through.    It was time to chase away the evil cats that hang around the shed and garage.

Then the woman spotted me as I was trotting around the back yard.    She's something, I tell ya.    She made the men keep my lead hooked to my collar, and apparently that's how they catch me when I start to run away.   See, I let the people get pretty close to me, but just as they reach for my collar, I duck away and run....and they can't get me!    But now when I've got the lead hooked on my collar, all a human has to do is stomp on that lead or grab it and I'm caught.

So now I'm back in the garage.   The people have walked my fence and found three places where I've been trying the fence.   I've heard them scheming about how to block those areas.    And I imagine I'll finally be released back to my yard after they do their work.

Hi there.   My name is Tufan.   Well that's not my full "official" name, but Tufan is what I answer to. 

Okay, so maybe sometimes I answer to that.......if I'm in the mood to listen......and if you happen to have yummy treats to offer .

Anyway, the last two days I've learned a new skill.   I think it's a very fun thing to do, but for some reason my people are getting pretty peeved about it.    Yesterday the woman of the house walked from our little house all the way across the street to the big house.   I'm the bodyguard/protector/defender to the people of my household, and I just can't quite stand when one of my people dares to leave the yard.   It's just not right, I tell ya!   I tried to convince her it wasn't safe to be out there alone, but she wouldn't listen.   She continued walking, all by herself, to the big house......where there's lots of evil cats and a demented bird.    It's dangerous for a person!   

So I did what any large guardian dog would do.   I escaped, ran after her, and completed my duty by chasing the bird to the top of the roof and all the cats in to the nearest tree.

Well, now that I have that taste of freedom, I'm liking it!    The people tried to block one of my escape routes by blocking a space under the pasture fence.    They then let me loose.   I ran around, checked out my very large fenced-in yard, then promptly jumped the fence.

Hey....I needed to!  There were three evil cats eating food scraps from their bowl beside the garage!   They had to be chased off.  And their food smelled absolutely yummy.

And then the people came outside and captured me.....after I made them chase me for about 15 minutes.    They thought they were being smart by putting a long cattle panel over the shorter sections of fence.....little did they realize I can jump over the other section of fence too.

So I had to do it.   Only this time when the people came chasing me, I ran down the field road. 

And it's fun to run back and forth over the bridge that crosses the creek.

And there's lots of interesting smells all around the field, down in the creek, and in all the grassy areas.

Hey, did you know that if you keep running, eventually you'll find yourself in a neighbor's yard?

The people weren't happy with having to hop in a car and chase me thru the bean field, over the creek, thru another field, across the ditch, and into that neighbor's yard.

So I've been called all kinds of new names....Houdini and Dumb-Butt seem to lead the list, but there were a few others that I don't think I should repeat.

The people have spent their day now adding to my fence while I've been cruelly locked in the garage.   I can peek out the windows and see them.   I bark a few times but they still haven't let me out.    That's really okay, because I'm pretty wiped out from my morning's adventures.....I sure need a long nap.

I met again with the flooring place and finalized all the flooring choices.   I'd been waffling over the tile for the laundry/mud room.   It was a nice tile but was priced a little above what the estimated allowance had been.   While it wasn't really the price, it was that particular tile for that price.   If I'm going to go over allowance, it's gonna be for something I really like instead of something that leaves me just "eh".  kwim?    So I prowled around the showroom and found the tile.  But silly me didn't think to take a camera with me or to bring one of the tiles home with me.   The best part...well other than having a gorgeous tile that I really like....is the new one is cheaper than the first one we'd chosen!   Yaaay!

Note to self: call and have M bring the tiles with him for the walk-thru next week.

I'd kinda reached the same point on the tile choices for the downstairs bathroom.   It was nice.....but I wasn't feeling that "this is it" about it.   Again, I found one that is perfect....and cheaper!!   Whoo Hoo!  

Then I made a final decision over the shower tile.   While the pewter would have been really neat looking, the black will be terrific....and for a price difference of $2000, the black will be perfect, thankyouverymuch.   Can you believe a difference of just over $2000 for the same space, just in a different tile??   Eeeek!   That made the decision to select the black so much easier.

We also had them submit the order for the carpet.   It's a patterned style that isn't made until the order is placed, so it made sense to place the order now.   Then the store owner piped up that the prices were changing effective Monday, so that solidified our resolve to place the order before then. 

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On the family front, we've been dealing with germs.   Oldest was diagnosed with an ear infection on Saturday.   Monkey Boy joined in on Monday.   On Wednesday, hubby and Demon Girl were started on antibiotics.    That leaves Tinkerbell and me.   Why do I feel like a walking germ target?      But the good thing is the four that are being medicated are finally sleeping better.   Apparently aching ears and stuffy/snarky noses don't bode well for sleep.   And loud snoring from both the man of the house and Monkey Boy means that this momma wasn't getting good sleep for a few nights.

When we temporarily relocated ourselves to this house, I had thought it would only be for a few months....heck, maybe even 5 or 6 months, but that at the most.    Silly me.   Anyway, in arranging items in the mudroom, I didn't even think about being here long enough to need our winter coats.   Well, it's that time of year that the winter coats are going to be a necessity pretty darned quick.    The arrangement of the mud room really didn't allow for many coats, and the few jackets we did have were just piled up in the corner behind the door.   Oh yes, folks, now isn't that the look of a tidy home .   Last week I put a bit of thought into just where we should put our coats and how to make them easily accessible for the children...because I'm just not into hanging/unhanging coats sixty gazillion times a day.    Hubby and I finally came up with a decent plan, and this morning I decided it was time to implement said plan.   All I gotta say is WOW!   Not only will this re-arrangement allow for the girls to have their coats easily accessible to them, it really opens up some of the space.    By moving the shoe cubby/sock drawer unit, it should alleviate the bottleneck every morning we have in front of the back door.  All morning whenever I've walked out there, I'm still very pleasantly surprised at how spacious the room now feels.   Yaay!!

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A small building crew arrived at the big house this morning.   With cold and rainy conditions outside, they are in need of indoor tasks.   Yaaay!!