Just in time for Valentine’s Day I’ve designed some brand-new notepads that are now available in my Etsy Shop, FlyingHero.
Ok fine, mom helped a bit.
Each notepad design comes with a Dachshund pen for all your super adorable writing needs.
I can’t help but ooooh and ahhhh over their cuteness.
My notepad sets are $12 each and would make the perfect gift for your Valentine this year! Or you could always just keep it for yourself!
You can fetch my new notepads and pens HERE. 
Now that it’s 2013 it’s time to wrap up my journey with the 13 Project.
Several months ago Serena from Pretty Fluffy had invited me to join The 13 Project, a wonderful initiative to get involved and help animals! So I put on my cape and decided to be the best hero I could to help the animals in need!
Incase you missed it….
THE 13 PROJECT
The 13 Project is a Pretty Fluffy initiative that involves 13 acts of kindness towards animals before 2013. The goal is to embark on a list of 13 achievable and worthy goals before the year is out.
To join, all you have to do is come up with a list of up to 13 ways you can help animals before the end of 2013. You don’t need to be a millionaire, you don’t need to have a website, or be a member of a rescue organization … all you need is the desire to make a difference. Any little bit helps!
I’ve spent the last few months working on completing my goals, and although I squeezed a few of them in at the very last minute, I love to think I helped make a difference.
My goals for the 13 Project….
1. Make a charitable contribution to some of my favorite rescue groups, as I have done for the past several years, through the help of sales of my paintings and artwork that my friends the Painting Ponies have made.
The Painting Ponies and I made some donations to The Chincoteague Pony Rescue and The Main Line Animal Rescue this year to help some of the animals searching for their forever homes. I like to think that every little bit helps, and I’m happy to use some of the funds from the sale of my products throughout the year to help some of the rescue organizations.
2. Get my photo taken with Santa at a place that donates the profits to rescue groups like I have done for the past 3 years.
I went to visit Santa at my Vet’s office this year in which the proceeds benefited the Hurricane Sandy Disaster Relief Fund for the animals.
3. Promote some local rescue group events to all of my followers through Facebook. I have shared a few rescue events with my fans so far, but hope to share even more!
4. Purchase some toys from Planet Dog, where 2% of my sale goes to the Planet Dog Foundation, an organization that helps fund the training and placement of service dogs.
Mom and Dad got me some new toys from Planet Dog for Christmas this year! I’m so happy that through the sale of these items I was able to help some very special service dogs.
5. Share some of the available adoptable dogs (like I have done in the past) at the local shelters with my followers. I shared a few of the adoptable pets at my local SPCA, and I hope to continue to share some of my four-legged friends that are in search of their forever homes.
6. Donate some of my old towels to a local animal shelter. I took a trip to the Chester County SPCA and donated a big box of unwanted towels and blankets.
7. Create Holiday Greeting Cards for my Etsy Shop and donate a percentage of the sales to animal shelters. My 2012 Holiday Greeting Cards donate 2% of all the proceeds to the Main Line Animal Rescue.
8. Promote responsible pet ownership and encourage my readers to spay/neuter their pets.
This particular goal may have slipped through the cracks just a bit, but consider this my public service announcement for 2013! Please spay and neuter your pets! I got the good old snip snip when I was 6 months old and I encourage you to do the same for your pets. We have so many animals that are in need of loving homes, and by having your pet neutered you are doing your part to cut down on the population of dogs in shelters. Check out these great reasons from the ASPCA as to why it’s important to spay and neuter.
9. Donate some of my outgrown sweaters and jackets that I no longer use to a rescue group that can use them for shelter dogs. I sent a donation of sweaters and jackets to the Dachshund Rescue of Bucks County & New Jersey to keep the rescue dachshunds nice and warm. I encourage you to do the same!
10. Create a new page on the blog that highlights ways you can involved and help rescue animals, shelters, and good causes.
Just under the wire I’ve launched a new page on my website! You’ll find my giving back link at the bottom of the blog, which features tips on how you can get involved with helping the rescue animals and how I give back myself.
11. Purchase some Rescue Chocolate as Christmas gifts that donates 100% of their profits to animal rescues.
Mom helped me purchase some rescue chocolate which I happily wrapped and gifted to my friends and family this Holiday season.
*image via Rescue Chocolate
12. Try to promote more products on my Friday Fetch feature that donate a percentage of their sales to animal charities. Since I joined the 13 Project I am happy to say that just about every feature on Friday Fetch has helped out a rescue group/cause with the sale of their items.
13. Encourage others to get involved with the 13 Project! I’ve been pinning and sharing the 13 Project with all my fans!
I hope to continue my efforts with this wonderful project, because there is always something that can be done to help the animals that we love.
And to all the animals out there looking for forever homes I send all my love. xoxo.
Did you hear that? It’s the sound of cheering!
Cheering because we’re ringing in the New Year! It’s now 2013!
I had a great 2012, but I’m really looking forward to kicking off 2013 with a bang!
I can’t wait for all the fun adventures that 2013 will hold, and I hope you’ll stick around for the ride!
xoxo,
In keeping up with my yearly tradition I’ve decided to take a look back over the goals I made for myself last year to see how I did! I’ve also come up with a new list of goals for 2013 that will hopefully keep me on my toes!
My 2012 Goals:
1. Learn a new trick with my favorite pony, Minnow.
Ok, so I can’t recall a SPECIFIC trick I learned with Minnow this past year, but I did star in our brand-new Painting Pony DVD with him. And I had a super fun super hero shoot with Minnow this summer.
2. Compete in my first agility trial or take an agility class with a new club.
While I’m not quite ready for my first agility trial just yet, I have been taking agility classes since the spring. I’m hoping I might be ready for a trial sometime next year.
3. Make more home movies, featuring me!
I’m happy to report that I’ve created lots of new video footage this year (over 50 videos on my youtube channel!), and I even landed on two national television spots at the end of this year (which I’ll be sharing all the details on the blog soon). And if you want to catch my biggest performance of the year you can check out my new DVD HERE!
4. Get more creative with my costumes.
I’m happy to say I’ve dressed up more this year than any other year! You might recall my pilot’s outfit when I went flying, my super cool Halloween costume as Wile E. Coyote, and even my dapper Holiday outfit for this year.
5. Master some new tricks and share them on the blog.
I started a new feature on the blog this year called Let’s Get Tricky! I also added a few new tricks to my repertoire and I’m hoping to continue the trend in 2013.
6. Take pictures every month for my 2013 Calendar!
So I may not have specifically set out to take photos for my calendar every month, I did rack up quite a lot of space on Mom’s hard-drive with my thousands of photos from this year.
7. Make more DIY projects.
I definitely got my DIY on this year! I came up with over 10 great DIY projects this year, including my Birthday Bandana, a Dipped Yellow Chair, and even a Pet First Aid Kit.
8. Paint more.
Painting may have taken a bit of a backseat this year, but that didn’t stop me from getting created. I opened up my very own Etsy Shop, Flying Hero, to sell my greeting cards, calendars and more – many of which have helped raise money for animal rescues!
9. Dig more holes in the backyard.
You know I got this one covered!
10. Smile everyday!
How can you not smile when you’re having this much fun!
So moving on to the upcoming year, I can’t wait to start 2013 off with a bang!
2013 Goals:
So what about you? What are your goals for 2013?
Don’t forget to start 2013 off right, check out my Calendar available for purchase HERE! Hurry, because I only have a few copies left!
One of the gifts that my mom got this year for Christmas was a subscription to Modern Dog Magazine (a lifestyle magazine for modern dogs and their companions) – it was love at first sight for me. Mom and I quickly poured through the pages and came across some really neat products that we couldn’t wait to share with you!
One of those products was from Easy 123 Art, a website designed to help you create your own paint-by-number kits out of your very own photos. How cool is that!
The website boasts that it’s simple to use kit allows you to upload your own photo, customize it, then get to painting!
These would make great gifts, or even allow you to create a custom painting of your own favorite furry friend!
You can fetch your own paint-by-number kit at Easy 123 Art starting at $49
Yippee, it’s Christmas Eve! If you’re anything like me you are getting out your best Holiday Outfit to wear to all of the upcoming Holiday parties and festivities.
This year I decided to whip up some special festive wear – a simple DIY to make you look oh-so-spiffy this Christmas.
Disclaimer: this post does contain some affiliate links
DIY Christmas Eve Outfit for Dogs
Materials:
Step 1: Cut just the collar off of the shirt.
Step 2: Cut the collar in half at the back of it.
Step 3: Glue velcro to the back of the collar, you may need to measure your dog’s neck to see where to position the velcro.
Step 4: Take your clip-on tie and shorten the length of the tie to an appropriate length for your dog by pushing the excess fabric up and through the knot of the tie.
Step 5: Cut off the excess tie fabric at the top, leaving enough that you can glue it later.
Step 6: Hot glue the ends of your tie back into place.
Step 7: Clip the tie onto the collar and you’re ready for a festive night!
I must admit, my festive Holiday outfit makes me so ridiculously good looking! Not the DIY type? Don’t worry, you can snag a festive pre-made bowtie for your pup* for any occasion!
So what will you’re pets be wearing this Christmas? Holiday bowtie, Christmas sweater or maybe – dare I say it – your birthday suit? Do tell!
Every year mom helps me wrap up my holiday gifts (the lack of opposable thumbs really hinders me in this department). And every year I try to add a little something special to the packages from me.
This year mom and I used some brown kraft paper, baker’s twine, and washi tape (cut out in the shape of dog bones using a cookie cutter) to adorn my gifts.
You also may have noticed the cute little gift tags with my Christmas mug on them! Well guess what!? I’ve created a printable set just for you!
Feel free to download my Holiday Gift Tags HERE. You are free to use them for personal use on all your holiday gifts this year. Send a little smiling doxie cheer! Yipppee!
Merry Christmas Everyone!
It may not be snowing in Pennsylvania just yet, but that won’t stop me from creating my own magical winter wonderland this Christmas!
Today we’re making magical DIY Pet Snowglobes!
DIY Pet Snowglobes
Materials:
Step 1: Mold your sculpy into a “snow mound” that will fit inside the lid of the jar. Make sure sure that it can fit inside the jar lid with the jar on top.
Step 2: Bake your sculpy in the oven at the temperature and time specified on the package. Allow to cool.
Step 3: Using a hot glue gun attach the “snow mound” to the lid of your jar. Then glue the dog figurine on top of it.
Step 4: Add glitter to your jar.
Step 5: Add water to your jar, making sure you don’t overfill it.
Step 6: Screw the lid onto the jar, shake, and enjoy!
It’s magical isn’t it?
I’m very much enjoying my snowglobe – it has just the right amount of Christmas Cheer!
This DIY was inspired by this tutorial from ModCloth.
Festive, fun, and made of COOKIES! This is totally my kind of DIY!
Mom helped me come up with a fun holiday garland to decorate my home with this year. I figured can’t hurt to make my home extra festive, because you never know what jolly round fellow might be stopping by in a few days!
DIY Holiday Pet Garland
Materials:
Step 1: Using your Electric Drill, drill holes through the pre-existing hole marks in your cookie. You can alternatively use an awl to push holes through them – but this method tends to crack the cookies easier.
Step 2: Spray paint your cookies a fun and festive color.
Allow them to completely dry before moving onto the next step, preferably overnight.
Step 3: Thread the bakers twine through the back of your cookies. A toothpick may be helpful to push the twine through them.
Step 4: You will want to knot the end of each piece of twine near your cookie so that it won’t slide around on the garland.
Step 5: If you choose you can tie some festive ribbon onto the bakers twine. Then hang and enjoy!
Had I know this Cookie Garland was just for looks and not for nibbling I might not have been as excited to make it.
Despite the red spray paint I can still smell the cookies underneath, so make sure you hang your garland out of reach of any furry friends! Mom says it might smell good, but they won’t taste good!
This diy was inspired by the following halloween decorating tutorial.
I love gift giving so much that I decided to round-up some holiday shopping guides for the dogs and dog lovers in your life this year! I hope it will help you find something special for someone in your life.
1. Wagwear Canvas Travel Bowl from Olive
2. Holiday Grow Your Own Sprinkle Pet Ornaments from Olive
3. Lili Chin Pet ID Tag from Blanket ID from the Donation by Design Collection
4. Grey Chevron Round Dog Bed from Inubar
5. Sweet Potato Chews from Chewy.com
1. Albert the French Bulldog Pillow from Urban Outfitters
2. Pink Balloon Dog Necklace from Art with a Twist on Etsy
3. Canine Coaster Set from Rifle Paper Co.
4.Terrier Ring from Mod Cloth
5. 52 Weeks of Treats Ebook from Pretty Fluffy
6. Sweater Pup Cookie Jar from Anthropologie
1. Dog Man’s Best Friend print by Holly V. Monroe
2. Wiener Dog Ornament from Urban Outfitters
3. Red Great Dane long sleeve t-shirt from We are all Smith on Etsy
4. Things Your Dog Doesn’t Want You to Know book from Urban Outfitters
5. Salty Dog Mens Soap from Chase Street Soap Company on Etsy