Attending the 2012 Pa Horse World Expo with my pal Minnow the Painting Pony was a new experience for both of us.
And for anyone who stopped by our booth – you may have thought I did a lot of this….
…and this.
But, in reality it was exhausting being the front man for Minnow – and drawing in the crowds.
This cute mug isn’t just for looking pretty – it’s for creating a crowd.
Although, my pal Minnow seems to be pretty good at that too. 🙂
It’s no surprise that I’m no stranger behind the camera lens. In fact, I’ve had mom’s camera shoved in my face since I was about 8 weeks old. Not that I’m one to complain much – usually when the camera comes out so do the cookies! So during my dapper doxie photoshoot the other day, mom filmed a little “behind the scenes” segment….mostly she was testing out the new video feature on her new camera, but regardless the motive – it caught some of the real action on camera.
Yes, I may have had a barking fit for more cookies at one point, but doesn’t every super model get at least one day to be a diva?
Yesterday on the farm mom decided to bring the ponies’ paints out of storage for a little winter painting.
As you can see, they made quite the mess.
A mess that I somehow got suckered into cleaning up.
And my lovely assistant was absolutely no help at all!
You can check out the paintings by my fabulous pony pals on their website.
Even though this video was posted on my Youtube Page last year, I’m pretty certain I never shared it on the blog. Mostly because it’s embarrassing for certain Dachshunds involved. I will not mention any names.
Either way, I hope it gave you a good chuckle today.
Last year I made my list of New Year Goals, so I thought it would be fun to check back and see how far I got with them – and also come up with a few new ones for 2012!
P.S. this may look like my Birthday hat, but right now it’s doubling as my new years party hat!
LAST YEARS GOALS:
1. Take another agility class or maybe even COMPETE in agility. Sadly since my last agility class at the Dog Training Club of Chester County I haven’t been able to attend any new classes. Not because I didn’t want to, but because the training center hasn’t been offering any new agility classes that fit my busy schedule, so mom’s been looking into finding a new place for me to test out my agility skills this year, like this place. But I did try my hand at an agility course while I was at the Dog Days of Summer Event and I even tested out some moves at the dog park this year.
2. Actually win a race at the Dachshund Races this year. I did even better than win just one race this year, I won 3! and I even qualified for the Championship race, bringing home a respectable reserve champ ribbon! Go me!
3. Make MORE artwork. This year I created and shipped all over the World nearly 20 original pieces of art. Not bad for my first full year of being a real life artist!
4. Visit some nursing homes. I made several trips this year to visit the nursing home – HERE, HERE, and HERE. I even made some undocumented trips too! It’s great when I can make someone’s day a little bit happier with my happy wagging tail.
5. Perform more with the Trick Ponies. I added lots of new performances with the Trick Ponies to my calendar this year. I visited a school and made appearances at the Ludwigs Corner Horse Show and The Dog Days of Summer event to name a few.
6. Learn at least 10 new tricks. Ok well I might not have accomplished this “10 new tricks” goal, but I did add a few new ones to my repertoire. Which reminds me….I never shared them with you guys! So that will definitely have to be a future post.
7. Dress up more often. This one I have totally accomplished. I was a dressing up fool this year with my 12 days of Christmas, my rocket dog costume and even my Valentines Day outfit to name a few.
8. Go on vacation. Admittedly I don’t really go on vacation much, it’s hard to get a way when you have such a busy working calendar like me! But I did get to take a special trip this year to Assateague Island to visit the sand and surf (and some new friends) with my pony pals.
9. Try something new. This year I took my first trip on a motor boat at the Marsh Creek State park, I built a super fort while mom was away in Chincoteague, and I even did some relaxing by the pool for the first time. Oh yeah, and I watched a movie in the park this summer!
10. Giggle more. I giggle everyday, what about you?
2012 Goals:
1. Learn a new trick with my favorite pony, Minnow.
2. Compete in my first agility trial or take an agility class with a new club.
3. Make more home movies, featuring me!
4. Get more creative with my costumes.
5. Master some new tricks and share them on the blog.
6. Take pictures every month for my 2013 Calendar!
7. Make more DIY projects.
8. Paint more.
9. Dig more holes in the backyard.
10. Smile everyday!
So what about you? What are your goals for 2012? Do you think I can accomplish everything on my list by this time next year?
P.S. Don’t forget there is still time to enter my giveaway to win my 2012 Calendar!
After owning my Christmas tree for 4 days I was FINALLY able to decorate it last night with my family.
I tried really hard to help dad string the lights….
…but when you have paws for hands it can get a little complicated.
So, dad had to finish up that step of decorating the tree without me.
But I did get to hang up some of my favorite ornaments.
Remind you of any super adorable Dachshunds?
In the end my tree came out looking spectacular! Although, I might have to gnaw off some of the bottom branches, you know, so my mounds of Christmas presents have plenty of room to fit under the tree.
Yes, I know, we haven’t even had Turkey Day yet and already there are Christmas wreaths out, holiday music playing and the smell of pine everywhere.
Even though it does seem a tad bit early for the Holiday Season Fanfare, when you work in a retail shop like I do it’s hard not to be prepared a few weeks early.
So this year I bit the bullet and broke out my Christmas scarf BEFORE Thanksgiving. Don’t judge, you know you think it’s stinkin’ cute.
I even went as far as to practice some of my Holiday looks. I think they pretty much speak for themselves…..
“Thanks for visiting, now please purchase every single item in my shop as a Christmas gift for your loved ones”
“Pretty Please, won’t you purchase that _______.”
“I’m even cuter when you purchase something”
“Don’t make me get ruthless and force you to do some Holiday Shopping”
“P.S. I’m fully prepared to give you the stink eye should you decide to leave empty handed”
Shameless I know, but a shop dogs gotta do what a shop dogs gotta do! hehe.
Make sure you check out My Shop this Holiday Season for some super awesome amazing spectacular gift ideas for everyone you know. I promise not to sing Christmas Carols in your ear. 🙂
Just because it’s called a “horse jump” doesn’t mean it’s any match for Super Ammo. (and I didn’t even have my super cape on!)
It’s ok to be jealous of my super jumping skills.
Sometimes when I’m at the farm I get the itch to wrestle and run like crazy. Sadly, sometimes my pal Trooper isn’t there to wrestle with me – so usually I find the next best thing, one of the cats!
Unfortunately the cats don’t always always feel the same way I do.
P.S. If you haven’t already seen it, I’ve got my new 2012 calendar available for purchase in my online shop! You’ll get to see my happy face all year long!
Over the Halloween weekend I went on nearly a 400 mile excursion to visit a place that is very special to my pony friends, Assateague Island, Virginia.
See my pal Minnow was born wild on Assateague 18 years ago, and every year he returns to neighboring Chincoteague Island to perform for a week during their annual pony penning. I never get to go because the island isn’t very dog friendly and sitting in the car is not a good idea in the summer heat.
Even dogs need to take advantage of the rest stop!
But this time as all the ponies loaded up for a special trip to Assateague to ride on the beach in the cool fall weather, I was allowed to come! Yipee!
The even better news was that I got to leave behind a rare October snowstorm in PA for the still cold but way less snowy weather in Virginia. Score.
Upon arriving Saturday evening I got to attend a special picnic where mom got to meet up with her Chincoteague Pony Friends from all across the country. I even got to meet a bunch of my facebook fans in person for the very first time, and I wasted no time showing off some of my favorite tricks so that everyone could have a good laugh.
The next day we were up early and headed across the bridge and onto Assateague Island with all my pony friends in tow.
Dogs aren’t allowed on Assateague (seriously?) so I spent my morning snuggled in a pile of blankets. Honestly I can’t complain, from what the ponies tell me it would of been too cold for me anyway.
Meanwhile mom got to live out her dream of riding the ponies on the beach. Boomerang and Blitz were excited to visit the island where their parents were born years earlier. It was a very special trip for everyone.
Naturally mom spent hours on the beach taking pictures of the ponies. She promised me she’d show me all the cool photos once she has time to filter through the nearly 1,000 photos she took (and I thought she took a lot of photos of me!)
But here are a few she showed me last night that I thought were extra special.
I taught those ponies everything they know. Don’t forget that! 🙂
After our beach adventure we headed back to the mainland so the ponies could participate in a fun show. They won me lots of ribbons – but I won the most special one of them all…
The costume contest! Well, ok, Minnow might have helped some.
Then on Halloween morning we made one last drive out to Assateague so the ponies could say goodbye to the ocean before heading home to PA. I told them I had to be back home in time to hand out candy to all the trick-or-treaters in my neighborhood!
So how about that for a Halloween weekend adventure? Pretty exciting, right? I just might have to spend the rest of the week catching up on my sleep after this weekend fun!
P.S. More fun photos from our amazing adventure will be popping up on the Painting Pony Blog & Facebook page as soon as my mom has a chance to filter through them all! So make sure you check back soon!