Crafty Canine Creations

The crafty conscious (& crafty curious) will be delighted by Anna Maria Horner's color-saturated, nature-friendly, whimsical, yummy wonderland of a blog. It's full of all sorts of gorgeous, inspiring photos, creative ideas & musings, and even two wonderful puppy-stuff projects: a happy-fun dog leash, and an adorable puppy themed tote bag, too (complete with applique pattern.) Follow the links for step-by-step directions, and while you're visiting, take a peek at her incredibly lush fabrics, quilt kits, & other fantastical whatnots.

Hot Times, Comfy Puppies

Summer is a wonderful season, but the heat can sometimes make things hard for those with fur. While I'm very pro-sunshine, there are some definite dog dangers associated with an overexposure to the sun, most especially heat stroke. The dogs at greatest risk for heat stroke include:

Overweight dogs

Dogs on medication

Puppies up to 6 months of age

Large breeds over 7 years old

Small breeds over 14 years old

Dogs with dark-colored fur

Breeds with thick coats

Breeds with short muzzles

Dogs with short, wide heads (breeds like Pugs & Bulldogs)

Dogs with lung, heart/circulatory problems

Dogs mostly rely on panting to cool them down, but there are some things we can do to help them out. Here are some easy tips for helping to ensure canine comfort & health when the temperature goes up:

*Make sure plenty of water is available at all times throughout the day.

*When you go on walks, be SURE to bring a bottle of water and travel bowl.

*While roaming about town, remember that ground surfaces, especially blacktop and asphalt can get VERY hot, and even burn paws. Be mindful and considerate about the route you lead your dog on.

*If your pup is let outside to play, be sure there is ample shade for cooling off in. Dog bodies cool off from bottom to top, so a damp towel for resting on is often a great idea, too.

*Ice cubes can be a fun treat (just talk to your vet for approval first.)

*Try freezing tasty concoctions in treat-stuffable toys (such as Kongs, etc.)

*Get out the hose and splash around together.

*Turn on the sprinklers.

*Purchase a small kiddie pool, and fill it with shallow water. Toss in toys that float.

*When inside, keep your dog in an air conditioned, or cooler part of the home.

*Have freezable teething comfort toys on hand (Petstages makes great, colorful, soft ones.)

*As always, NEVER leave your dog in a parked car (and if you see someone else doing so, please discreetly call 911 or notify your local SPCA for help.)

*Keep in mind that dogs can get sunburned, too (especially light-skinned breeds like Pit Bulls & Dalmatians; it might sound silly, but breeds without nose pigment like Collies and Shetlands are actually prone to noseburns!) Talk to your vet about whether or not your dog might need sunblock. Dogs typically need the most protection along the outside tips of ears, bridge of the nose, inside legs, & tummy. Many Vets recommend Epi-Pet, an FDA-approved sunscreen designed specifically for dogs and horses.

Stay cool! (...and, while we're referencing cheesy 80s yearbook sayings: "have a nice summer," "K.I.T," and "S.U.N.Y," too...)

Sew Cute Puppy Projects

Crafty sorts will absolutely love Lori Marie and her Pretty Little Things creations. She has been featured on Martha Stewart, and many of her colorful, whimsical, happy designs have also been sold at Pottery Barn Kids (in fact, I recently discovered that my home is already laden with her Pottery Barn Kids stuff during the holidays... I have both her Halloween and Thanksgiving 06 collections... tablecloths, placemats, advent calendars... it's crazycute BEYOND adorable stuff. And before you ask, no, I still don't have kids... just a love of imaginative festivities!)

Lori's blog currently has three FREE puppy-related craft tutorials: go there to learn how to make a cushy-cozy pet bed, "piggy in a blanket" dog coat (links are at the bottomish part of her blog's home page, right hand side,) and a NO SEW(!) fabric pet portrait like the one pictured here (click her Martha Stewart link.)

I blame my best friend, Heather, for introducing me to the wonder of Pretty Little Things... now I want to make all the pet crafts...buy one of everything Lori has for sale at her Etsy Shop(handbags, pillows, tees and on and on)... clone her adorable cottage studio... I fear I may at some point need a PLT intervention...

Free! World's Cutest Dog Collars!!

Attention all spotted dogs (and creative faux spotties, too!): hurry, hurry, hurry and go to Lucky Fiona's Etsy Store to get your supercute, multi-colored polka dot "Hottie Dottie" collar, absolutely FREE (!) with any purchase. All you need to do is email a picture of your cute, spotted self (ask mom or dad for help) and then pick out something else to buy (I fancy the cheerful, girly, punchy-pink floral "Aunt Tilly" design seen here, but there are loads of others with equally fun, retro-inspired prints & charms.) See Fiona's Blog for complete offer details ASAP (offer runs only throughout June, 2008, or while supplies last.)

Training & Baking & Cooking...Oh My!

I recently discovered the cutest aprons ever, created by etsy artisan, boojiboo. These aprons are especially made to take comfort, fit, and style in mind. The one I ordered (above) will be perfect for when I'm baking up dog treats (and human treats, as well... because humans need cookies, too!) Boojiboo has lots of retroish apron designs, some using other doggy-type patterned material, and some non-doggy. All qualify as adorable (especially the kid-sized ones, and most especiallyespecially the "mommy-and-me" apron sets...too sweet!)

Music For Kids At Heart (& Actual Kids, Too)

For those of you who don’t know, I’m a music-loving freak of a person; pretty much everything I do is accompanied by my own personal soundtrack. Music is on while I’m driving, returning emails, doing the dishes, taking a bath...and on and on. I’m that annoying person who wanders around the office humming, and suddenly sings some odd random portion of a lyric out of nowhere. So when I first began teaching preschool environmental educational classes, I definitely wanted to create my own preschooly soundtrack, mostly just to use as background music (during drop-off, pick-up, art, etc.)

After consulting various preschool teachers and moms (both modern & olden-timesish,) I uncovered a highly disturbing truth... MOST KID MUSIC IS TERRIBLE! (Case in point: the kid-show phenomenon The WonderPets, as pictured above... trust me when I say that they should be seen and not heard...) Sure, some of the kid music out there can be catchy & cute... but even most of the superior stuff is, at best... barely tolerable for adults. And let me tell you something else... I don’t know if the ears of professional kid-music reviewers have been forever ruined by the likes of Barney & CO,...but lots of this kiddie music is reviewed as being "grown-up friendly..." LIARS!

As with most poisons, my theory is that parents and professional kid-music reviewers somehow build up an immunity to the badness over time (sort of like the Wesley character from The Princess Bride...) Alas, those of us without continuous listening exposure experience the evil effects in their purest form.

Every so often, I use those rare kiddie-music gems (the uncommonly good songs about birds, butterflies and naturey stuff) as learning tools. Some quirky main-stream musicians have started making children's albums (artists like They Might be Giants, Lisa Loeb, etc.) and this trend is definitely a step in the right direction. In small doses, the music is actually great, and the kids honestly love it (and really, in the end, it’s all about the kids...)

Except it’s not. Not entirely. If I was going to have preschooly background music playing everyday, the songs needed to be stuff I really liked, too... stuff I wouldn’t mind hearing over and over (and over.) In order to preserve my sanity, and the shred of adulthoodiness that I possess, I wound up scouring through my CD collection, Ipod, and the Internet to come up with (NOT kid music that’s grownup-friendly but) grownup music that’s kid-friendly. It was a long process, yet I finally emerged triumphant, with a eclectic collection of superfun songs that seem to appeal to most tolerant breeding-aged earthlings & their offspring.

During drop-off and pick-up, parents often ask about said background music. And so, by popular demand, what follows is my favorites list (followed by some samples:)

Three Little Birds (Bob Marley)
Spinning Away (Sugar Ray)
Fancy Footwork (Chromeo)
D.A.N.C.E. (Justice)
Camel Walk (Southern Culture on the Skids)
Stand (REM)
Robot Rock (Daft Punk)
Top of the World (Shonen Knife)
Can’t Take It In (Imogen Heap)
All is Full of Love (Bjork)
Dear Prudence (Siouxsie and the Banshees)
She Brakes for Rainbows, Mesopotamia, Roam (The B52s)
Sailing (Christopher Cross)
Book of Days (Enya)
Edge of the Ocean (Ivy)
Extraordinary (Mandy Moore)
Blink (Plumb)
Spice Up Your Life (Spice Girls)
Groove is in the Heart (Deee-Lite)
Father & Daughter (Paul Simon)
Forever Young (Alphaville)
Little Miss Magic (Jimmy Buffet)
Moon Child (Cibo Matto)
Rainbow Connection (Sarah McLachlan)
Somewhere Over the Rainbow (Israel Kamakawiwo’ole)
Song Bird (Fleetwood Mac)
The Sunshine (Carma w/Jesus Wore Dickies)
Under the Boardwalk (The Drifters)
What a Wonderful World (Louis Armstrong)
Season Song (Kaisercartel)
All You Need is Love, Your Mother Should Know (The Beatles)
We’re Going to be Friends (The White Stripes)
With Imagination (Harry Connick Jr.)
I Will (Ben Taylor)
Fireflies (Faith Hill)
Fly (Hillary Duff)
Make Someone Happy (Jimmy Durante)
Moon River (Audrey Hepburn)
Following the Sun (Mirah and Spectratone International)

New Puppy Announcements

The blossoming of summertime always seems to bring the pitter-patter of little feet (and that includes those of the furry variety!) Purple Daisy Press offers the cutest custom birth announcements for human babies and new puppies, too! They'll make the cards for you, or (if you're a crafty do-it-yourselfer) you can visit their Etsy shop where they'll create a card layout complete with your little one's photo; then you can upload the image & print out copies yourself using one of the online photo services (like snapfish, kodakgallery, etc.) Supercute!

Eat Brunch...Save a Greyhound!

Every weekend, from 7am-noon, the Wyndham OC (Costa Mesa) holds a "Paws N Claws" Breakfast Buffet. By gobbling up yummies like waffles, & omelets, you'll actually be saving precious puppy lives! Dining with your dog on the lakeside garden terrace is only $15.50, and a portion of all proceeds goes to Greyhound Pets of America. Deelicious! For more information call 714-442-8593.