Cooking for Dogs

I cook for everyone else in my family, why not add Groovy-James and Sidney Holler?

The dogs have been eating Fresh Pet Select dog food on top of a bit of natural kibble.  I like that their food seems "real" and not like a bunch of byproducts and fillers.  So, why not take it to the next level and start making them their food?

I've been reading up on it and as it turns out, Groovy-James and Sidney can have a similar diet to mine.  Other than not being able to tolerate spices and having to keep it bland, they'll be able to stay strong and healthy when eating plain white rice, peas, carrots and unseasoned, baked chicken.  So, that's what I have made them.  I will keep reading and accumulating recipes in an effort to change things up for them from time to time.

And they love it!

I think that I'll still add the kibble to their food to give it a little bit of crunch!  But they seem very happy with their homemade dog food!

He Knows How To Get His Own Way

When Groovy-James joined our family Jay had two stipulations.  1.) He had to be completely house trained (this didn't work out but he was very easy to train and never has accidents).  2.) He not sleep in our bed.

Today I came home from my grocery shopping to find this:

Someone here knows how to get his way, and unfortunately it's not my husband.

Pretty Bouquet

Dear Twitter,

Thank you for Rdio.  I have been listening to non-stop old-school Tori Amos and being fantastically productive in my yard and it's all because Twitter is the best place in the world to work gave us the gift of Rdio.

Just look at what I made!

  Okay, so I didn't MAKE Groovy-James, but he is my little shadow.  He follows me around everywhere these days.  He even waits outside of the bathroom while I take my shower.  He's always got his eye on me.

Because We Like Our Dogs To Actually Be Cats

Groovy James has taken to hopping up on Bunny's toy shelf to watch over our front yard.

Doesn't he sort of look like, "Don't worry Ma'am.  I had my training with the Navy Seals.  No one will walk bye this house and not feel threatened in your absence."

He just doesn't realize that he's only 10 inches tall.

Groovy James + PB&J= Love

Groovy James is so smart.

He actually went into Lila's lunch box and pulled out this container that housed her leftover peanut butter and jelly sandwich from lunch today.  He was so concentrated on getting the sandwich out of the box that I had to get it on film.  Sadly, I took the sandwich away from him, but he got one bite and a lot of praise for his problem solving skills.

He just looked at me in confusion, probably thinking, "if I'm such a good boy, why no sandwich, lady?"

Think Pink!

This is a perfectly pink bouquet that I picked from my garden this morning.

Both Groovy James and I love it!

I divided the roses from my pruning this weekend into two smaller accompanying bouquets and am enjoying the prettiest table on this side of the Rocky Mountains.

Friday After School

It's hard to believe that it was only a year ago when my girls were playing in the fire hydrants of south Philly with the other neighborhood kids.  So much has changed.

They are enjoying the freedom of Friday afternoon.  No homework.  Nowhere to go and nothing that has to get done.  With week schedules that are jam packed with too much action, one afternoon of free play is necessary.

Because we don't have my dream backyard just yet, the girls are making the best of our garden hose!

 

And they aren't the only Holler's who love the sunshine!  Groovy James is quite the sunbather himself!  I may need to invest in a bet of doggy sunscreen!  

Fresh Pet Select

For years Sidney Holler has refused to eat dog food. Sidney has lived on cat food and the crumbs of clumsy children alone. No matter how we tried, Sidney was only interested in fur ball resistant, elderly pet, catch-0f-the-day, run of the mill cat food.

When Groovy James came into our lives we knew that we couldn't also feed him cat food. His foster mom told us that he was especially fond of table scraps and didn't seem to understand dog food at all.

The day that we adopted him I saw a little cooler in the dog food aisle called "Fresh Pet Select." It's all natural, real food, dog food. You keep it in your fridge and slice it up for your dog. It looks a little bit like bologna and has chunks of peas and carrots in it. It seemed like something that a dog might think was a table scrap, so I picked up a tube of it! The dogs can't get enough of it. Sidney has been off of cat food for almost a month and Groovy James begs a little bit less when we eat now. I feel good knowing that I'm not just feeding my pets a bunch of fillers and hooves. Plus, one large tube lasts for a bit over a week. We are able to feed two dogs for $15 a week. We mix Iams natural kibble in with the FPS, so it's a bit more than that, but barely.

Both Groovy James and Sidney Holler love it. Best dog food ever!