Santa Sunday and the Difference Between Me & Jake

Last weekend, I went to see Santa.

This is what happened when I went to see Santa:

So how do I know you're the real Santa?

Mom, I'm not too sure about this guy

Take the photo if you must

But I'm not getting any closer to this dude

Photos by Carla Edwards Lawrence 

And this is what happened when Jake went to see Santa:

SANTA SANTA SANTA
(This was taken shortly after Jake had run around the place & knocked down 3 small Christmas trees. According to mom, such behavior was "classic Jake".)

Photo by Saved Images Photography, 2006

Tuesday Treeday

Super Sparkly Saturday - GardenFest of Lights

A couple weeks ago, mom and I went to the GardenFest for Fidos at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden.  The GardenFest of Lights is an annual event at the garden, and on the GardenFest for Fidos nights, they allow dogs!  Mom and I had never been, so we decided to check it out.  The lights and decorations were amazing!

If you live in the Richmond, Virginia area, the next GardenFest for Fidos is on January 3.  The suggested $2 pet admission goes to benefit the Richmond SPCA.  The lights are beautiful and it's a great reason to get out with your human and support a great cause.

Garth's Gift Guide!!!

Welcome to my first EVER edition of 

Garth's Gift Guide!

Since it's the time of year when many of us are thinking of Christmas shopping, I thought I would provide you with some gift ideas. 

I like to support small businesses and local businesses, and I love to get cool stuff.  Here are a few of my favorite products (which would make GREAT gifts for the pups in your life), in no particular order.

1. Collars from Coconut Retriever
http://coconutretriever.com/
Coconut Retriever collars are very colorful, and you can pick from a number of different patterns.  The collars look great and they're very well made.  They're hand made in the U.S. and we think the prices are quite reasonable ($12 to $20).  The collars are made of webbing covered with cloth, with heavy-duty buckles and D-rings, so they're very strong.  They're also washable, which is a plus for those of us who like to get dirty. 

We bought one Coconut Retriever collar when we were in Key West last year and two this year.  Back in October, we met the woman who makes them, and we always see her brother with his cart on the corner of Duval and Eaton Streets.  Mom thinks it's great when she can meet the person who actually makes the products she buys. 

This is the collar I got last year
It's one of my favorites

This is my new pirate collar

This is my other new collar
The tropical pattern makes us think of Key West

Coconut Retriever also makes very cute doggie clothes in wonderful, colorful patterns.

2. Wag-in-the-Box membership
http://waginthebox.com/
With a Wag-in-the-Box membership, you receive a box full of dog-related goodies each month.  It gives you a chance to try new products and brands without buying a whole big bag of things.  

We met the Wag-in-the-Box lady at the Fetch-a-Cure Mutt Strutt and were pleased to learn that they were based in Richmond, Virginia, because we love to buy locally.  The Wag-in-the-Box lady was very nice to me and let me try a sample of Bowser Beer.  I liked it so much she gave me another sample, then she gave me two bottles to take home with me.  (I know how to charm the ladies.)  

Mom thought it would be fun for me to try Wag-in-the-Box, so she got me a three-month membership as an early Christmas present.  We received the box a couple weeks ago, and it was FILLED with yummy stuff: Buddy Biscuits grain free treats, Buddy Biscuits dog cookie mix, Whole Life organic sweet potato treats, a Barkworthies curly bullystick, Whole Life cod treats, a Wag More Bark Less oval sticker, and a Snoutstick nose balm for dogs.  We were impressed by not only the variety and amount of goodies in the box, but also the fact that only a couple of the goodies were sample sizes -- the rest appeared to be regular size.  Based on the amount and types of products, we thought it was well worth the monthly membership fee.

There's definitely
something good in here

LOOK at all these goodies

I'm loving the Barkworthies
curly bullystick

Nom nom nom nom

For each box you purchase, Wag-in-the-Box makes a $1 donation to a nonprofit organization of your choice (you have to chose from their list, but it's a big list).  They also made an extra donation to Fetch-a-Cure because we bought our membership at the Mutt Strutt! 

Locally owned, a great product, and support of nonprofits -- this is the type of business we like to support.

3. Treats from Babka Bars
http://babkabars.com/
Babka is one of my dog blogging pals who lives in Key West (lucky dog).  Her mom started making these gourmet, all natural, and very yummy treats because she had difficulty finding treats with healthy ingredients for Babka.  Babka Bars have no sugar, salt, butter, oils, flavor powders or fillers and are made with real fruits, nuts, whole grain oats, whole grain flour "and a whole lot of LOVE", per Babka. Babka herself is in charge of quality control, and she taste-tests one cookie from each batch (very lucky dog).

There's even a picture of Babka on the label

We ordered some Babka Bars when we were in Key West, and mom found their customer service (Babka's mom) to be extremely nice and very helpful with suggestions about visiting Key West.  Unfortunately we missed them when we were in Key West this year, but I hope to get together with Babka for a play date on our next visit.  

When the bars came, I found them to be extremely yummy!

I hate it when mom makes me
practice impulse control

Just thinking about Babka Bars
makes me drool

Don't they look nommy?

Babka Bars also supports nonprofit organizations.  A portion of their proceeds from holiday sales will be donated to Paws 2 Care Coalition.  Bravo Babka!

4. Dog tags from Dog Tag Art
http://www.dogtagart.com/
We learned about Dog Tag Art when my friend Mayzie did a product review and giveaway.  (You can read Mayzie's review here.)  Dog Tag Art's tag selection was so amazing, we had difficulty deciding, but ended up ordering the Colorful Pirate Skull tag because we liked the colors, and because I am a pirate.  Our order came promptly with no problems at all, and Mom and I LOVE my pirate tag!  I'm hoping to get another tag for Christmas.  

Name & phone number
are on the other side

At Dog Tag Art, you can even make your own custom tags out of your own photographs or graphics!  We think the prices are reasonable and we love that they don't gouge us for shipping costs (shipping is $1.99 for all U.S. orders).

The tags are made of a recycled steel core coated with a polymer and have a very high-quality look and feel.  They're made in the United States.  Dog Tag Art is based in Asheville, North Carolina, which is practically local - if you're using a very broad definition of "local".

Dog Tag Art also has a service called "Virtual Leash" that lets you maintain a unique website for your pet with unlimited emergency contacts that can be instantly notified.  We haven't looked into this service yet, but you can read about it on their website at Virtual Leash.

5. Adventure Walk for a rescue dog from Canine Adventure 
- OR -
a cool Canine Adventure Magnet
Canine Adventure - Sponsor a Rescue Dog
Canine Adventure - Magnets for Mutts
For the dog lover who has everything, why not give them a rescue dog Adventure Walk in their honor -  and make a rescue dog's Christmas!  

Looking for something smaller, more of a stocking stuffer?  For $5 you can get a super-cool-looking Canine Adventure magnet (just like the one on the Garth-mobile), and the proceeds of magnet sales during the month of December go to support the Richmond Animal League's Operation Silent Night.

Cool Canine Adventure magnet,
proudly displayed on the Garth-mobile

Canine Adventure is a Richmond, Virginia dog walking service that takes dogs on Adventure Walks.  (I go on an Adventure Walk with my buddy Tim from Canine Adventure every Wednesday.  We have a GREAT time -- it's so good to get out for a hike mid-week, and Tim is awesome!)  

Canine Adventure does a tremendous amount to support local organizations such as Fetch-a-Cure, Richmond Animal League, Ring Dog Rescue, Odessa Rescue and Rehabilitation, Adrati Rescue, and probably others.  We think the world of Canine Adventure and its founder, my buddy Josh, and we love that they do so much to give back to our community -- in addition to providing a great service!

*****

Neither my staff nor I have been compensated in any way for including products and services in Garth's Gift Guide.  (In fact, these businesses don't even know we're listing them.)  Perhaps in the future, I will sell advertising, and a space in Garth's Gift Guide will be highly prized.  But at this point in my blogging career, I'd simply like to share with my readers information about products/services I like and that I'd like to support.  

As you can probably tell from reading this, to us it's more than just the product.  We're interested in the people behind the product (or service), where it's made, and how it's made.  When a company does good things, we want to reward them with our business and tell our friends about them.  It's that simple.

The Best Part of Christmas - Neapolitan Lab

Sure, I love presents (who doesn't?), but to me, the best part about Christmas is getting together with the family.  The day after Christmas we went to Uncle Randy's, and Mia (my chocolate lab cousin), and Sadie (my black lab cousin), and I played and played and played.  Mom threw the ball for us, then Uncle Randy threw the ball for us, then my cousin Libbie threw the ball for us.  And we got lots of petting and belly rubs from my uncles, aunts, and cousins.

Last time I saw Mia, she was a little puppy, and she really wasn't very much fun.  In fact, spending time with her was quite painful because she kept trying to chomp down on my ears and lips with her VERY sharp puppy teeth.  But she has thankfully outgrown the puppy stage and is interested in playing something other than the bite-and-terrorize-Garth game.  Now I can romp and play with her like she's a grown-up lab!

Mia kept chasing me because I had the coveted deflated ball.

She sure has grown up since the last time I saw her.

Mia still has much to learn.
Here I'm trying to teach her the eagerly-awaiting-the-ball look.

She doesn't seem to be paying close attention.

Uncle Randy demonstrating the strait-up-in-the-air chuck-it throw.
He sure had us confused -- especially when the ball came down
on the roof and rolled off the other side and no one could find it. 

Eagerly awaiting the ball.

Still eagerly awaiting.

This is right before Mia grabbed the frisbee and we snapped it into 2 pieces.

Mia got the deflated ball.

She has way more energy than I do.

She sure runs like a puppy.

Mia with her super-nasty retrieving toy, which we all love.

I got the tennis ball.

Mia chasing me.

Demonstrating to Mia the art of returning the ball for another throw.

She seems to be paying attention now.

Sadie came and joined in the fun.

Sadie and Mia

Mia wouldn't cooperate and pose for the camera.

Sadie is always happy to pose for the camera.

Sadie and Mia relaxing after a good romp.

Apparently not everyone enjoys family get-togethers.
Granola spent the day hiding on top of the cupboard.

I've never actually met Granola because she's always hiding when I'm around.
But that's okay with me.  I'm not exactly eager to meet her.