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Our dependable Subarus have gotten me and the dogs to and from Cape Cod, safely and easily, countless times.  We vacation at “The Cape” and are fortunate to have our vacation home in a dog-friendly community there.  Back in the 1980s and 1990s, I would drive from central Massachusetts to almost the tip of Cape Cod regularly.  Timba, the black Labrador, accompanied me on those long, lonely trips in our 1988 Subaru Legacy wagon.  Timba was the most wonderful travel companion, she was the most well-behaved mutt I’ve ever known.  Once we got settled at the house, Timba and I would go to the beach and I would sunbathe and read magazines while Timba swam and investigated the shoreline.  She never wandered more than a few feet away from me, and would often come nudge me with her cold nose to get me to turn over so I wouldn’t get burned — and to make sure I hadn’t fallen asleep in the sun.  I treasure those memories.  When I see Subaru’s Dog Tested, Dog Approved ads, I smile and think of Timba.  Here’s one:

http://bit.ly/WW7C2Y

We had a few Subarus in Timba’s lifetime, and when we adopted Hobie, in 2000, and Hector five months after Timba died, we continued the Subaru tradition.  Hobie and Hector were always with me on the trips to the Cape.  They were my companions, as well as my protection.  During the Hobie/Hector Years we had a few Subarus:  the maroon 1999 Legacy wagon (whenever Hector saw a maroon station wagon, it didn’t matter the make, he would get so excited, and I would say “I’m with you!  It’s not me!” ha ha ha).  Then, the black 2003 Legacy wagon, pictured here.

Then, the white 2006 Tribeca (the only Subaru I didn’t like very much, although it was certainly big enough to carry us and all of our gear).  And finally, the 2009 Forester that we still drive today.

Check out Subaru’s interactive Facebook app “Dog Tested, Dog Approved”
http://subar.us/USzh6V  Here you can make a drivers’ license for your dog (please be sure to use a FAKE address!)  Here is Hobie’s driver’s license!

Match up your dog with your favorite Subaru automobile (when I did this option, it came back and told me “Hobie would look great in a Forester.”  Well, of COURSE he would!). I decided to put Charlie in the Forester instead — how cute!

You can ask one of Subaru’s canine experts for advice; or map out your favorite dog walk.   After you’ve “Liked” the Dog Tested Facebook page, be sure to enter the Rafflecopter contest for some great prizes including Visa gift cards in the amount of $350 or $150….. the contest runs all week, until Feb 24th, and you can enter once a day.  Winners will be announced within 48 hours after the raffle closes.  Here’s all the info you need in this widget:  a Rafflecopter giveaway

Hector died very suddenly in 2011.  My heart still breaks to think of the last days we spent together, driving hurriedly to the Cape and back with Hurricane Irene bearing down upon us.  I think the rushed trip added to his downfall.  To make me feel better, I like to think that his spirit resides in the 2009 Forester, and I feel him there with me.  

 Five months after Hector died, we got Charlie Brown, and he and Hobie accompanied me to the Cape all throughout 2012 while Charlie was growing up.  We had many walks in Wiley Park, and the Subaru never let us down.

We adopted Charlie’s brother, Cooper, in August.  Cooper hasn’t been to the Cape yet.  It will be interesting to see if all three will be able to make the trips with me in 2013 once the season begins.  The Forester does fit all three, plus all of our stuff, comfortably.  I look forward to our new travel adventures with our latest pack member, and hope there is not a lot of stress!

P.S.  Brought Cooper to the vet today for his annual vaccines and check-up… a happy coincidence, after our appointment, I stopped at Dunkin’ Donuts for an iced coffee (yeah, we do that in New England in February).  While I was in the store, Coop moved over to the driver’s seat in the Forester (see pic, right).  I think he was jealous that Charlie got put into the Forester on the Subaru Facebook app!

This post is sponsored by Subaru. I am being compensated for helping spread the word about the Dog Tested. Dog Approved.™ campaign, but k2k9/K.S. Mueller only shares news for things we support.  We are huge fans of Subaru, and have always said we should be in their commercials!

My dogs (and cats) are my “Kids” (a little teaser there from Subaru).   Right now, Tux, the cat (a.k.a. “Bullet” because he flies through the air without touching the ground) is walking on my arms and keyboard — yeah, I let him, even though it’s most annoying!  

The dogs are outside playing in the 30 inches of snow we got yesterday from the Blizzard of 2013 — our town held the record in snowfall yesterday, but West Boylston beat us out in the end with 34 inches. If we ever have to drive in the snow here in central Massachusetts, we rely on our trusty Subaru.  These days, it’s a 2009 Forester, but we’ve had several of these reliable and safe automobiles. Since 1988 I’ve never owned any other brand of vehicle. Before that, I used to cry and panic when it snowed, now I actually look forward to driving in the snow, and friends will often hear me roar “I love my car!”.  I’ve convinced a lot of friends and colleagues to buy a Subaru.  Our Subaru Forester fits all three dogs, me, and all our gear.  Don’t you just love their commercials? Ever haggle with a dog? Grant Weber has.

We’re fortunate to live in a dog-friendly neighborhood.  Almost all of our neighbors have at least one dog, and that’s a good thing, because dogs are important members of any family.  Our dogs, Charlie Brown, Cooper and Hobie (and their predecessors Hector and Timba) are important family members because they keep us entertained, make sure we exercise, make us laugh and smile a lot, and keep us on a set schedule.  It’s important to wake up at dawn and go outside and bark at all the neighbors walking their dogs before work, you know. Do you want to know when it’s 9:00 a.m. or 5:00 p.m.?  Not to worry, Hobie will tell you because that’s when it’s time to eat.  Charlie Brown will tug on my sleeve (or my arm if I’m wearing short sleeves, ouch!) to tell me, at 11:00 a.m., “it’s time to start getting ready for work or you’re gonna be LATE!”.  Hobie accompanies me in the room while I’m taking a shower, every day, and three-legged Cooper curls up on the sofa to announce that it’s 10:00 p.m. and time for bed.  They each provide therapy when we’re down in the dumps, and teach us lessons about how to live in the moment and enjoy life to the fullest.  

The dogs accompany me on trips to the grocery store (no, they don’t go inside, they wait, impatiently, in the car); to the bank, to the coffee shop, and most especially on excursions to the shores of Cape Cod where we go as often as possible.  I wouldn’t think of leaving them at home when we go to the beach.  (I get separation anxiety, ok?)  

Last weekend, we watched the Puppy Bowl, and it sure was fun using the interactive Subaru Dog Tested Facebook App.  I can’t decide whether my favorite part of the app was “Put Your Dog In A Subaru”, or creating a doggie driver’s license.  I made a doggie driver’s license for Hobie.  I put Hobie in a Forester and Charlie in an Outback.  

This post is sponsored by Subaru. I am being compensated for helping spread the word about the Dog Tested. Dog Approved.™ campaign, but k2k9/K.S. Mueller only shares news for things we support.  We are huge fans of Subaru, and have always said we should be in their commercials!

One year ago today, I drove up to the New Hampshire border, on a somewhat warm, sunny January day, and met a little puppy named Charlie Brown at the home where he and his litter mates had been fostered since Christmas.  Charlie Brown went home with me that afternoon.  The brood had been discovered in an abandoned house in Tennessee, with their mama dog, who was eventually named Kate.  Great Dog Rescue of New England dubbed them the Kate-Plus-Eight litter.

Charlie howled on the way home in the car, just like his predecessor, Hector did 10 years earlier (see Hector’s story here)  Here are the first pictures I took of Charlie, after he eventually laid down and went to sleep in the back seat.  Awwwww!

We got Charlie Brown home and he met Hobie.  Here are some pictures of that.

Oh my DOG!  As a Subaru owner for nearly 30 years, I’m very excited right now about the Subaru campaign being offered by BlogPaws. I’m currently on my 5th or 6th Subaru and will NEVER own any other type of automobile… I have always said I should be on their commercials!  I’ve recruited many Subaru owners at my workplace… I estimate there are about 7 or 8 out of the 20 people who work there, who drive Subarus, thanks to my “insistence” LOL.  Hey, you can’t survive a central New England winter without a trusty, dependable Subaru.
So anyway, I just signed up to be a blogger with BlogPaws for their Subaru campaign.  It’s going to  be somehow connected to the Puppy Bowl, that runs as an alternative to the Super Bowl.  I hope I get chosen as a blogger for BlogPaws and Subaru!  Weeeeeee!!!!

                                Here’s a picture of Charlie in my 2009 Subaru Forester

                                   Me, in the car before THAT… a 2003 Legacy wagon

When we were about to bring Cooper to his/our forever home after his amputation, we realized we were in a bit of a conundrum since both puppies wanted to sleep on the bed.  I got the brilliant idea to get a child’s bed and put it alongside of our bed so he would sleep there.  While driving past an old friend’s house, who happened to be the first dog person I connected with when I first came to Spencer, lo and behold there, in her front yard, was a child’s bed with no sign on the front saying “FREE”, like people often do around here.  I couldn’t believe it, but we always say Dog works in mysterious ways.  I backed up the car, drove up    
her driveway, pounded on her door; she wasn’t home.  I said, “What the heck,” and put the child’s bed in my car (it just squeezed in to the way-back of my Subaru — have I mentioned how much I love my car?).  I called her from my iPhone, “Hey, haven’t seen you guys in a while, hope you’re ok.  Anyway, I just saw that child’s bed at the end of your driveway and, well, I took it.  Hope that was ok.  If it wasn’t ok, call me back and let me know.”  I should mention that I never drive past her house on my way to the grocery store (that’s where I was going)… ever.  Weird, huh?

I got the child’s bed home, I was so excited at the freaky coincidence!  Of course, Gil pointed out that it was too big for our tiny little bedroom, and how on Earth was I going to get in and out of bed if it was alongside, since the metal-framed bed has built in headboard and footboard (see photo, above) as well as protective sidebars to prevent said child from falling out.  Groan!  Oh well, child’s bed gets relegated to the basement where the cats slept on it for months (another friend managed to find me a barely-used mattress that fit perfectly!), and then one day I brought it upstairs into the guest room to use it exactly for the purpose intended — uh, sort of.  Ok, truth? Cooper and Charlie use it to hop up onto the antique brass bed which is way too high for even the most sprightly of dogs to jump onto.

But that’s not what I’m here to tell you about today, oh no, that’s not it at all.  It’s the blue chair!  Once the trundle bed (ha ha) was banished to the laundry room/cat bedroom/icky basement, I went in search of option #2 for Cooper, who was still recovering from aforementioned amputation, but was destined to arrive on our doorstep any minute.  I had recalled seeing some pictures of him, when he still had four legs, sitting on a lawn chair… he seemed to have an affinity for the things (still does) so I figured I’d find something similar, but possibly for indoor use.

A-ha! Wal-Mart enters the picture.  Wally World has these great chairs that are sort of like the kind you’d keep in your car’s trunk for viewing your kid’s soccer game or the next tailgate at Gillette Stadium.  Only these chairs are made for indoors, slightly larger, cushiony, aimed at dorm-dwelling college-bound kids.  (Hey, it was August, whatd’ya want?)  There I am, in the middle of Wally World, I took the chair out of the box, unfolded it from its collapsed position, and checked it out.  I sat in it, I measured how high up off the floor it was, I imagined a Charlie-sized dog, minus one leg, curled up in it.  Perfect!  I heaved it into my cart.  While I was at it, across the aisle, I spied a beanbag chair throwback from the ’70s, ah memories.  I jammed it into the cart as option #3.

Blue chair was a dismal failure.  Firstly, once again, me and my measuring skills (not!), it didn’t quite fit beside the bed.  Secondly, both dogs (Charlie and Hobie) looked at it like it was a foreign invader from another planet.  “Get thee the hell out of our room!” they seemed to cry in unison.  I relegated blue chair to the (ahem) “dining room” which, if you’ve been to our house isn’t for dining at all, unless you count three dogs chomping on rawhides while sprawled across the teeny-tiny floor.  Our dining room is the library/music room.  It’s where grandma’s Hammond B3 church organ resides, along with gazillions of CDs, photos, DVDs, books and of course a computer.  We have a seating issue in our house — if you come to our abode, be prepared to stand… that is, until blue chair made its appearance.  We’ve used blue chair quite a few times since I hurled it into that cart at Wal-Mart.  But no, no dog ever used it for a bed.

Until recently!  You see, the neighbor (who lives on the street BEHIND us and who was, up until recently purportedly… how do I put this nicely? well, “not a dog person” how’s ‘at?) they got a dog!  Yup! And where’s the best place to look out the window and spy on the new dog if you’re a k9 in k2’s pack?  You guessed it!  Blue chair!!

Charlie was first, he hopped up there and then decided “Hey!  This is comfortable!” and took a snooze one day.  But blue chair was originally supposed to be Cooper’s, and it took him five months, but lately, for the last couple of days, there he’s been, sleeping in blue chair!!

Yesterday was my monthly trip to Cape Cod to attend the Eastham Dog Owners’ Assocation monthly meeting.  It was like spring there — 45 degrees and party cloudy.  Another world from life in central Mass.  You’d never know the two places are in the same STATE!

I didn’t bring any of the dogs with me this trip, and by the time sunset came around, I needed a doggie fix.  I knew right where to go:  Wiley Park where everyone walks their dogs in the late afternoons.  I had a lovely walk with three of my acquaintances and their pack of dogs.  Sorry Charlie Brown, next time!

Here are some pictures I took of the sunset.  I’m not pleased with the photos, my new camera doesn’t take the glorious photos the old one did (same brand, same model supposedly).  The light on Cape Cod is miraculous, and these pictures do not do it justice.  It hardly picked up on the pinks and reds.  Ah well, next month I’ll look at the settings more closely, maybe I have something set incorrectly, who knows?  (click on a photo to enlarge)

Today, January 14th, was Dress Up Your Dog Day.

The closest we come to dressing up our dogs is when Hobie goes to the groomer and comes back with a bandana.  Here’s a picture.  Ok, it’s not the greatest!