A Little Fun and a Ray of Light from the Red Dog

We've had a rough year here at Red Dog Central Command, so Shiva's Mom and I decided to make a quick getaway (thanks to Aunt Dian) to Folly Beach over the weekend for some much needed R&R.  As long-time readers may remember, this was not our first trip to Folly.  In fact, the initial visit was so much fun we commemorated it in a series of videos entitled "Red Dog's Folly" and "Follypalooza."  That trip also was where we discovered our crazy Cattle Dog mix Joey's aversion to sea foam.  Thankfully, this time he decided being a beach dog might not be such a bad thing after all.  To that end, we are happy to provide you with evidence that Joey is no longer frightened of the foam:



Sadly, this trip also was the first made without this blog's namesake and constant travel companion, Shiva the Red Dog, who left us in July.  Furthermore, the first Folly trip was our sweet Katy's last beach trip before her eventual decline and demise a little over a year-and-a-half ago.  This made for a bittersweet reunion with the lovely island, one that Shiva's Mom and I did our best to enjoy in spite of some painful reminders of those we have lost and left behind.  Fortunately for us, we were accompanied by the little ones (Shiva's favorite "things" in all the world), who did their best to keep us occupied and happy.

Shiva's favorite little girls in one of her favorite places in all the world.

As if to reward us for living life in spite of our sadness - and just in the way Shiva would want us to - we were blessed to capture the following while taking a final picture of the beach the morning of our departure:

A blessing.

We like to think this is the Red Dog's way of touching us one more time, providing us with a beautiful and tangible reminder that she's with us every day, an ever-faithful companion lighting the way on our journey through life.

Our Newest Best Christmas Gift Ever!!

Every few years - if you're really lucky - someone outdoes themselves while giving you a gift, and you're left with something that has much greater value to you than whatever it cost in the first place.  Several years ago, Mr. Man's mom presented us with a hand-painted perpetual calendar depicting the smiling faces of our dogs.  Aside from a brief trip back to Santa's workshop for repairs thanks to the handiwork of Ajax the cat, this calendar continues to occupy a special place in our dog-addled minds and hearts. 

Now, thanks to Shiva's Aunt Dian, we are making room for our newest favorite surprise...

A BOXIE PET PORTRAIT!!!!!!!!

 

She did it...she really got us a Boxie!  If you've never heard of them before, Boxies are custom hand-painted pet portraits on a box frame.  They're made right here in Knoxville, they look awesome on the wall and we can't think of a better way to immortalize our original three girls than with this.

WOOOOOHOOOOOO!!!!