Beautiful Bodega Bay

Today we ended 2007 on a good note. I spent the day running on the beach in Bodega Bay with my momma, dadda, and sista! It was the best New Year's Eve yet! Because I have a very good recall, my parents can trust me off lead. My sista on the other hand, not so reliable. Lindsay is deaf, they can't use their voices to call her to them nor will she pay attention to hand signals in such a stimulating environment with so many new things and smells like a beach. That's no excuse for her not having a good recall, right? Well, sort of. Lindsay also has a very high prey drive. Any small animal trucking along, she closes in on it and runs after it like no tomorrow...at that moment nothing else matters. So, for her safety and that of other animals, my parents decided it's best for her to always be on lead unless we're in an enclosed area. Too bad, 'cause she's missing out on running around and goofing off like this:

And this. Whoa...I had all paws in the air...I didn't know I could do that! My sista wasn't happy with me gallivanting on the beach. She thought I was rubbing it in that I was off lead but she wasn't.


Hmmmm...maybe I was.


It's a duel: Me against my sista!

You'll never catch me!


Darn, she got me by the ear and wouldn't let go. How does she always seem to win? "C'mon guys...let's see what's at the end of the beach, ' my dadda says.
We found lots of foot prints from other dogs. We sniffed around to see if we recognized any of them. We didn't.

My momma wanted to sit and watch the beautiful sun setting. She said it's her favorite time of the day. If only we could watch the sun set everyday.
She's right, it is beautiful!

Lindsay says she likes watching the waves crash on the shore. My dadda was fussing with the camera and took a picture of us. I was surprised 'cause usually my momma doesn't like to be in pictures. She'd much rather be behind the camera. Wish I had a chance to do that. So, for all of you who hound (pun intended) my momma for pictures of us with her in it...here you go. Who knows when the opportunity will come again..


"Ok...enough watching, lets go jump in! Woo hoo...it's COLD!"

Note to self, beach water is salty! Yuck!

Time to head home.

My visit to the Bay

This post is coming a little late. During my visit to the bay I tried accessing my blog to post but my abuela's (that's Spanish for grandma) internet was kinda goofy. It would kick me off and not let me upload pictures to my blog. I grew tired fussing around with wires, modems, and routers that I decided to wait til I got home to complete my thoughts and add visuals. Then, year end must do's rolled around. I had to help my momma clean out our closets so she could take stuff her and my dadda don't use anymore and donate them to Goodwill. Then, she had to return to work with a nasty cold. She suspects my abuelo's gave it to her during our visit. Whatta gift, huh?! I'd much rather get cookies or jerky than a nasty cold that drains your energy.

Anyhoo... on with my adventure last Sunday, the day before Christmas Eve:

I went with my momma to the Bay to visit my abuelo's (a little repetitive, but in case you forgot I thought I'd emphasize the fact...ha ha hah). My momma has a mission to learn how to make her abuela's infamous tamales from Guatemala. Her abuela isn't with us any longer so she is learning from no one better than her papa (that is Spanish for dad). He is the only one amongst five siblings who took interest in learning this complicated recipe. My momma is taking notes and pictures to document the whole tamale making process. Hopefully every year here after she will continue the tradition and make tamales for the family. Geez...I hope she will throw one down my way, too. My dadda couldn't come because he had to work, so, Lindsay volunteered to stay with him to keep him company. I thought that was nice of her.

Ok, I have to vent about the ride down! There was so much traffic for a Sunday morning!! When we got to the bay bridge, we came to a complete stop. There were a sea of cars in front, back, and to the sides of me. Having been in the car for nearly three hours, enough was enough....what is the hold up already?







We finally reached our first destination to visit my dadda's parents and my uncle Ron. My momma secretly plotted with uncle Ron to help her get my dadda's Christmas gift. I think this time he will truly be surprised. She always tries to surprise him but my dadda is way too smart and always figures out what my momma is trying to surprise him with. I stayed with my grandparents while my momma and uncle Ron went to the human stores to get my dadda a jacket he's been wanting.
Here is grandpa Ralph with cousin Kody.














And my uncle Ron and grandma Anna posing with me in front of their house.














Then we went to visit my momma's padres (that is Spanish for parents), actually, our final destination. My momma got right to tamale making. Here she is documenting how my abuelo makes the special sauce.














While they were working, I had free roam of this big two story house. I kept running up and down the stairs to see if I could beat my last record. I think my fastest rate was 1.2 seconds flat! Yeah, these long legs helped me bypass some steps...my abuela was amazed with my talents.














I think it's pretty neat how I'm running up and down the very stairs my momma used to when she was a kid.















My uncle Chris came to visit me, but he forgot to bring my Christmas gift! Maybe he'll bring it the next time I come visit? When my momma told us she wanted us to pose for a picture, uncle Chris told me to make a funny face. He's so silly! I wanted to call him tio Christos but he forbade me! He said he prefers uncle over tio....I wonder why?



















"Ok, momma....I'm tired! I've had a long day. It's time for bed now, I closed the door already...lets go mimmis!"














"That's better, but something is missing."














"Ah, yes! I like to be covered in down blanket please."















The next day (Christmas Eve) they got right back to making tamales. My momma wasn't kidding when she said this tamale making stuff was complicated, not to mention, lots of work! I wanted to stay clear while they zoomed around the kitchen, so, I took refuge on the most comfortable recliner ever!














Finally, they finished! I was pooped from watching.














Then it was time for my Christmas Eve venture. My momma and abuelo took me to Fort Funston. My momma and dadda used to go there all the time when they lived in the bay. I can see why...it's oodles of fun!!
"Wait. Momma, I think I see another RR coming my way."



















"Dawgsta! It was a Great Dane! Great, I can't believe I confused a RR for a GD...don't tell anybody!"














My momma swears she's a photog with her point and shoot camera. I am a good subject though, so I gotta give her credit cause she does have an eye for beauty (hee hee).

Merry Christmas!

Wishing you a Merry Christmas and a dog gon good New Year!

~Bison and the fam

Case of the lazies

Yesterday we got the case of the lazies 'cause all we did is hang out on the couch while we watched my momma clean house. We wanted to stay out of her way, so, naturally the best place to hang out was the couch.


We started our day by watching my favorite doggie show on animal planet. My momma is lucky we are civilized because some of the things I see other dogs do on that show make me cringe. eek....I would never think of being naughty like that.
"No change channel, ppppllllleeeaaaaasssseeeee"














Then, we napped....














And, napped some more...















Ok, all that sleep gave us some energy to be silly...

A Little Naughty

Me and Lindsay are good *most* of the time.



















We have our share of naughty run ins with our parents but I swear....we're only having fun! And I know my parents can't help but laugh. Hey, if you ask me, I should be getting paid in cookies for making them laugh. By the way, the mess you see to your left are compliments of Lindsay a couple years ago 'cause she said she hated the bed my momma got her. *I* would never do something like that!












Alright, I'll get right to it. Today Lindsay and I felt like we needed to expand our living space beyond the kitchen/living room area. The baby gates made us feel a little prison like, we're almost 3....and, well, I think we're old enough to have some freedom to explore other parts of the house. So, I practiced my technique and perfected the art of opening the baby gate. It was a matter of time I figured out how to open it....c'mon...it was a piece of jerky! After all, I am a smart boy!
















Well, when my dadda came home from work, this is what he found:






We were just sleeping on their comfy bed with the cats. Totally harmless! Even though my momma laughed (told ya I would make her laugh) she's discussing with my dadda ways to secure the gate so I can't open it while they're working. Little do they know, there is no job too big or small for Mr. Bison....

I elfed myself

Let's spread holiday cheer by being silly....

Check out me, my sista Lindsay and Bella, and my bro Linus elfed out:

http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1172262782 Now, it's your turn to be silly. Go on, elf yourself!

Our Visit with Cousin Dane

Yesterday my parents drove me and my sista up to Reno to visit my cousin Dane. Dawgsta, was it cold up there! Thank goodness my momma brought my jacket with fleece lining. It sure helped me keep warm. When we went to the store the day before to be fitted for my new jacket, my momma noticed another jacket that looked like a scuba suit. She thought it would keep me warmer but the largest size they had didn't fit me. I'm a long and lean boy with a very deep chest, so I'm hard to fit. While we were at the store, I was the star. Everyone who worked there wanted to talk to me and find out more about my breed. I made sure that I was a good representation of my breed by acting polite. I sat down while I let them pet me, as to not intimidate anyone of my large stature. If only they knew I have a weakness for nice people. Only thing, none of them had treats.....what's up with that? Isn't that like the unspoken rule or something?

Anyhoo, on to my day of fun...

As soon as I got out of the car from a very looooonnnnnggggg trip, my cousin Dane greeted me with open paws. He was so excited that we drove up to visit him, he wasted no time and got right to the wrestling.

Then, Dane looks down, and spots his favorite toy.












He calls me to check it out.

Neato...it's this big jolly ball like ball with a rope inside it. I wouldn't mind a good game of tug.












Dane had other plans... He did this neat UFC move where he went underneath me. Dawgsta, is he fast...totally surprised me!! These are the times my height hinders me.










Yeah, this is the good stuff...two legged wrestling! Not only is Dane fast but he's got springs built into his legs. He's almost as tall as me here.











After vigorous play, we were ready to come inside. What's for dinner? We smell something good!

















My sista, Lindsay, said she could taste my uncle Alex's secret tri tip recipe through the glass. Whoa, her senses are really heightened since she's deaf, because I can't do that.










Dane told me we were going to one of his favorite parks. Something about lots of Ducks. I wonder what his fascination is with those birds?











Dane was suited up and ready to go before our parents were in the car. Whoa, he really is serious about this park being his favorite.












He was right, there are lots of Ducks swimming. I wonder how they can handle the cold weather because my footsies are already iced?











"Lets get moving, cause I need to warm up!" my uncle Alex said. Yeah, I agree, it's cold!! I even see signs warning us to be careful because a thin layer of ice could form on the ground that can make us slip.









Check out the pond, it's practically iced over!













There were these funny looking horses on our walk. They were shorter and wider than other horses I've seen. The air smelled strange too, actually it made me hungry. Reminded me of the green tripe my momma gives me for breakfast sometimes. hmmm....








My auntie Michelle called me over because my momma wanted to do another one of her photo shoots.











Here they are rounding us up. My sista, Lindsay said she didn't want to be a part of the picture. Darn it all!!! How does she get out of it?











"Dane, see what I go through?"

"Yeah, Bis, this sucks! Don't they get that we're freezing our butts by sitting here?"










Just to make my momma happy, we finally looked at the camera. But you can probably tell we weren't that excited about it.










This concludes my fun filled day visiting cousin Dane. I hope my parents take us up to visit him more often. Maybe in Spring or Summer when it's warm? I'm a hot blooded boy...I live for the heat!! Well, maybe not that hot. Just warm enough.