Merry Christmas to All!

Wow! Christmas was great!! Sorry we haven't written on our blog for a couple weeks but it's been a whirlwind..... It was so nice to finally be able to sit back, be with our family and just relax. We had such a nice Christmas. It was really cold (OK it was really cold for LA - mid 50's) but it rained almost the entire day. LOVED THAT!! It made all of us feel like we could just sit around, spend time together and do absolutely nothing. I (Rosie) was a bit confused by all of the gift unwrapping and paper flying everywhere but it sure was fun once I figured it all out. In fact I got a brand new tennis ball for Christmas and was so excited. I'm including a picture of me with my ball in a box. FUN!!! Angus had a great day too. Grandma made scarves for all of the humans. We're also including a picture of Angus checking one out and wishing he got a scarf too! But we got to eat extra food - brisket and macaroni and cheese... we don't get extra treats like that very often so it was an extra special treat. Today T, J and boys are going to Disneyland. Happiest Place on Earth!!! They haven't gone in almost 9 years and it apparently "snows" on Main Street in the evening. Can't wait to hear about their day. Angus and I plan to just hang out and continue to recover from our fabulous holiday.

Working Hard or Hardly Working.....

OK - You decide --- are we working hard? Or hardly working? We go to work each day with J. She's lucky enough to be able to work at home so every morning after breakfast, we "commute" to work with her.... we head down the hallway to her office. Then we spend the day with her. We take our lunch break at the same time and then when her computer shuts down at the end of each day, we jump up when we hear it and then "commute" home. Ah - it definately is a dog's life. PS - Only 11 days until Christmas!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Santa is Coming!

We can't believe it's December 3rd already! Wasn't it just Thanksgiving? That's OK. Christmas is J's favorite holiday in all the world. In fact, she tells me that she and T got married a week before Xmas (December 17th to be exact) just because they love the holidays so much. This year is their 25th wedding anniversary. WOW! That's a really long time but it has been quite a wonderful ride so far with many more years to come. We just want to share a few pictures of how our house is looking with all of the merriment. J & R made a gingerbread tree and the decorating outside looks just great. As the sign by the front door says..... Santa is Coming!

We're Stuffed!

OMG! I didn't know you could eat so much food and still feel so good!! Thanksgiving was wonderful. Being with my family was just the best. Great food but even better company. It's the end of a long day so I just want to say HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO EVERYONE. Sharing a couple pictures of the turkey. Angus and I both got to partake. MMMMM......So now it's off to bed for me - don't they say that eating turkey makes you tired? Whoever said it is right.

Thanksgiving is almost here!

Whoo hoo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thanksgiving is almost here. T & J are busy getting ready. The stuffing is now together and ready to put in the turkey in the morning. J says you're either a stuffing "in the turkey" and or "out of the turkey" kind of person. I guess it's like being a Pepsi person or a Coca Cola person. This is my 1st Thanksgiving with my new family. I am SO EXCITED - my tail hasn't stopped wagging all day. Angus tells me we will get Thanksgiving dinner too --- YUM! Cannot wait! Turkey, stuffing, gravy, mash potatoes. And who knows.... maybe even dessert. I will be sure to have J put some pictures up on the blog showing the fabulous feast we will get to enjoy. Of course, as T says, the best part of the holiday is just being together with family (and friends) enjoying each other's company and thinking about our blessings. We will also keep in our thoughts those who have been impacted by the Southern California wildfires. Happy Thanksgiving! Barks and kisses from me - Rosie

Aftermath of the fire

We are so sad.... J's dear friend A.B. lost everything in last week's devastating fire in Sylmar. A.B. lived in Oakridge - the community of 600 homes that was descimated. Less than 100 are still standing and unfortunately, A.B.'s was destroyed. She escaped with her life last Friday night with just a few items. Luckily her incredibly loving and wonderful sister J.B. lives nearby and is providing great support. A.B. has been staying with J.B. and family while spending many hours sifting through the rubble that once was her home. So far she hasn't found much - only a cross that was hanging on the wall, and a plate from Holland (she was born in Holland and her parents came to America when she and her sister were tiny girls). The positive to all of this is how strong the human spirit is and how much they can withstand and still think toward the future. J says the other good thing to come out of this horrible tragedy is to again see how warm, caring and helpful people can be. We know that A.B. will be OK in time. So Angus and I are sending our love to A.B. and to all those affected by the awful fires. J is posting a few pictures that A.B. took from her neighborhood 2 days ago. It really looks as if an atomic bomb went off.... Rosie

Another Fire!

Oh no!! Here we go again!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Just before we went to bed last night, we heard another fire had started near to where we live. A couple days ago a big fire began in the Montecito/Santa Barbara area. We live more than 60 miles from Santa Barbara and while we are concerned about our neighbors to the north, it really gets scary when it's close! So we got up this morning and the sky looks like soup - thick, greyish brown. You ALWAYS know the fire is bad when you see the sky look like this. I turned on TV and YIKES!!!!! There is a really bad fire in Sylmar which is about 7 miles from our house. The mayor of Los Angeles is giving a news conference now and he is telling us the following: *More than 2500 acres have burned since last night *There are 70 PMH winds *More than 600 firefighters have been deployed *I-5 (the main north-south interstate from San Diego to Canada) is shut down by the fire --- ugh - more traffic headaches! *Dozens of structures destroyed *Power lines are in danger and they may have to begin rolling blackouts to conserve power. Very scary! So J is telling us we need to stay inside (no chasing squirrels for me today) because the air quality is really bad. And we need to conserve power - no washing machines, extra lights on etc. So, we are going to stay put, keep an eye out and hope that they can start to contain the fire really, really soon. Rosie & Angus

A Rose(ie) by Any Other Name.....

J has a friend "A" who also happens to have a dog named Rosie. Rosie is about 10 months old and is a Boston Terrier. J's friend and her family also have 2 kids (the 2 legged kind). Rosie (the terrier) doesn't look anything like me (a golden retriever) but we both have fabulous names and are both very smart and beautiful girls (if I say so myself - BOL!)..... We both also seem to like taking baths. The other evening Rosie (the terrier) was watching A's daughter take a bath. She started whining and whining - A couldn't figure out what was happening - it suddenly dawned on her that she wanted to jump in the bubblebath. So - in she went!! OMG, OMG! The pictures are priceless so J asked if we could share them on our blog. One picture is the "girls" in the tub and the other picture is also so darn cute - Rosie (the terrier) and A's daughter sleeping on the bed. I told J she has to thank A and family (and especially their Rosie) for allowing us to share this great story and these wonderful pictures. Barks and kisses from me - Rosie (the Golden.....) :)

Fall is finally here (we think....)

Ahhhh..... we woke up this morning and we think Fall has finally arrived. We are both so happy I am including pictures of Rosie and me. It's often hard to tell when Fall truly arrives here in LA because it seems like it's always 80 degrees and sunny. While we LOVE warm weather, sometimes it's just nice to have cool, crisp air and a lovely cool ocean breeze. It is perfect today! About 65 degrees out. All of the windows in the house are open and T, J, & R have sweatshirts and sweatpants on. With all of our fur, we are perfectly content. And - Thanksgiving is just around the corner. It is our favorite holiday here. The chance to be with family and friends, the enjoy the Earth's bounty and to be able to stop and give thanks for our blessings - no matter how small. We will give extra thanks this year to a life well lived --- Rocky - our golden retriever who passed away in August. And we will give great thanks for the addition of Rosie to our family. Sending paws and wet kisses from me - Angus!

Volleyball

No - neither Angus or I play volleyball but our human brother "R" plays. He plays for a club called Santa Monica Beach Club (SMBC). He has been playing since he was about 13 and his team is REALLY GOOD! They placed 5th in the nation at the Junior Olympics this past July that was held in Salt Lake City, UT. The only problem with volleyball is that Angus and I can't go watch him play. They always play at the American Sports Center in Anaheim, CA. www.americansportscenter.com It's only a couple miles from Disneyland. The facility is also the training facility for the US Men's Olympic Volleyball Team. You know - THE GOLD MEDAL TEAM FROM THE BEJIING OLYMPICS!!!!! USA, USA, USA..... Today was the 1st tournament of the season and his team went 3 - 0. A really good start. When T, J, and R went today, there was a big banner congratulating the US team. I am including a picture of R (#8) and of the banner. Go BEACH!

Election Day!!!!!

Hi it's me Rosie. I love Election Day! I hope everyone who reads this either has gone and voted or plans to do so. Whomever you vote for, just be sure to do it. Today is such a historic day and is just thrilling...... T&J took me with them to vote. We vote in the garage of a neighbor. It really is a true polling place. J went 1st while T stood on the sidewalk with me. He spoke to a really nice young woman who was voting in her first presidential election. So wonderful!! And then when J was done, she stood with me while Tim went and voted. He is so funny - he asked the election official how many times he could vote (kidding of course) and the official, in a deadpan voice said "Three times" (also kidding of course). BOL! How funny is that. Anyway, when T was done, he came out and put his "I Voted" sticker on my collar. I felt very official and very much an American. I'm including a couple pictures of me with my sticker. When we got home, I had to drink alot of water. Being an American is hard work but is SO WORTH IT!! So - don't forget - get out the vote and make your voice be heard. God Bless America!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Halloween Fun

Last night was my 1st Halloween in my new forever home with T&J. It was so exciting (at first) to hear the doorbell ring. I ran to the door, stood there and wagged my tail as candy was handed out. Then I ran back into the family room and jumped around - I was SO EXCITED!!! What a fun thing to be a part of!

But after doing this 2 or 3 times I got pretty bored. By the end of the evening, I stopped even paying attention to the door. Angus didn't seem to care much either - but he's much older than me and has been through this loads of times.

We still have candy left over but T&J were smart - most of it has now gone into the freezer.

I've included a picture of me looking outside and waiting for the fun to begin yesterday. We had this really neat head with an exposed brain that was on a motion sensor and everytime someone came to the door, the head talked, and moved and lit up.

It may be hard to see me at first (I may even look a bit like a ghost) but there I am none the less..... Rosie

This afternoon T&J (our 2 legged people) carved their pumpkins. Angus and I just sat and watched as it's hard to carve pumpkins without opposable thumbs - bol..... They did a pretty good job if I say so myself. There is a really big one, a medium size one and 2 little ones. The medium sized one represent J because it has a ribbon attached to the stem - kind of like a hair ribbon. Each pumpkin represents the 2 legged family members - T, J, C & R. BTW --- congrats to R! He just got accepted to University of Oregon. He may be a duck. I kind of hoped he would go to University of Washington - at least that way he'd be a huskie. That's really a BOL! We are getting very excited about Halloween but I know they T&J will make sure we don't get scared by all of the activity Friday night. More to come and I'll try to get them to put a couple pictures up on the blog. Have a great evening!! Rosie

It's a dog's life

Ah - another great day in LA although it's been a bit hot. It was probably mid 90s today. With the heat we haven't taken our walks as much as we like. So Rosie has spent time just hanging out in the backyard waiting for squirrels to come down from the trees. Rosie will sit for hours on end just watching and waiting. And when the squirrels won't oblige, she heads inside, jumps up on teh couch and relaxes. It sure is a dog's life.....

Our first note

Hello!! Today we begin our 1st blog..... we are so excited as we are very new to this whole technological world. Normally we just spend our days sleeping, and chasing tennis balls, and laying in the sun and laying with our people as they work. As much fun as that is, we decided it was time to get with it and join the rest of our 4 legged friends.

A little about us -----

Hi! I'm Angus - I am a 13 year old black lab. I was born along the shores of the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland. My family brought me home when I was just a puppy. We lived in Maryland for a few years and then in 1997 we moved to LA. WOW! It's paradise every year. My family also brought my 2 cats - Tasha and Deanna. They came home around the same time I did and we have all lived together from the very beginning. About 7 years ago, my family decided I needed a bigger friend to play with so they went to the Golden Retriever Club of Greater Los Angeles Rescue http://www.grcglarescue.org/ and we were lucky enough to bring Rocky home. He was such a great brother to me! He only had 1 eye that made him look like a pirate and I loved him!! He was the best brother I could ever ask for. Unfortunately late this summer he got really sick with cancer and had to leave us and cross the rainbow bridge. I know I will see him again someday...... I was so sad - we were all so sad because we missed him SO MUCH but then we thought that he might be happy if we went back to the Golden Retriever people and see if there was another golden who might want to come home with us. WE WERE SO LUCKY!!!!!!! Low and behold - Rosie was waiting for us! We met her in late August and she seemed to like us so she came home and is now my new best friend and sister. We all love her SO much and even the cats are OK with it. We like having alot of activity in the house again. I will let her tell you a little about herself now....

Hi! I'm Rosie. As Angus mentioned, I came home with him in late August and am now part of a family that seems really happy to have me in my forever home. I am 8 years old and previously lived with an elderly couple from the time of I was puppy. Unfortunately, my former people both got sick and couldn't take care of me any longer and the golden retriever rescue people found me. I was with a wonderful foster mom and foster siblings for a few weeks and then along came my new people - J, T, R, C --- and they asked if I would like to be a part of their family. I took one look at them, and at Angus and said "sure!" So home I came.....

I love my new home. I like to chase tennis balls - I run around the house finding new ones in all kinds of fun corners and closets. I have gotten a bunch of new toys that squeak and squawk and make fun noises. I pretty much ignore my feline siblings but that's OK because they ignore me too. I love to go for long walks but am just as content to lounge around the house and be with my people. I am lucky - they both work from home so they are here alot. This is a great place. And when Angus told me he wanted to start blogging, I figured what the heck - let's do it!

So --- HELLO from LA!! We will try to keep you up to date on what's happening here is SoCal as they call it. BTW - we live really close to where the Porter Ranch fires just happened. We had lots of smoke near our house but we were never in any danger..... I always felt really safe too. Bow wow wow for now!!!!