Web Junk Wednesday

Hello dear readers, I hope that your post Thanksgiving week is going well. I am traveling north this week, so here is a quick edition of Web Junk Wednesday!

CATS IN SPACEEEEEEEEE!!!!!

Dogshaming.com is one of my favorite funny dog picture websites. This little singing husky doggie reminds me of Clover. 

This Ink Callander is awesome!

I love Texts From Dog. They remind me of conversations I have with(at) my own dogs.

 Bacon Christmas Ornament!

The "roar bark" of the Maned wolf is super haunting but also really cool!


This kids makes the best face ever.

Happy Wednesday everybody. Do you have any web junk you found this week? Share it in the comments below!

My New Bag: Little Black Bag Review

I don't know about any of you guys... but I get very emotionally attached to my purses. So it's very hard for me to decide when its time to get a new one. Most of the time my bags are falling apart before I'm ready to part with them. But sure enough my trusty brown leather purse, that I've used for the past two years, had to be retired. So began my hunt for the perfect replacement. 

Now I'm not the giant purse carrier by any means, but I need something that can handle my rather short, but essential, list of items I carry with me everywhere. This list consist of, but is not limited to, my wallet, a pica-dilly journal, iPhone, Chapstick and lipgloss/lipstick, travel makeup bag, pens, sunglasses, keys, and a few pieces of jewelry if I decide to switch out during the day.

After a few weeks of searching online I finally found the perfect bag! The Nila Anthony Color Block Box Top Handle Bag had showed up on a subscription website called Little Black Bag. I have had an inactive account with them for a few months prior, but had never ordered a bag before. I hadn't really seen anything that I couldn't live without, and I have always been a little weary of subscription based businesses. I've used ones like Shoe Dazzle before, but I really don't like the idea of automatically getting charged if I forget to skip or cancel for the month. (I always end up canceling my accounts as soon as the item I've ordered has come in.)

But I was in LOVE with this purse. It was so cute, and I was quickly smitten. So began my search of trying to find this specific bag somewhere else. (Non subscription). I found this bag in yellow on Modcloth, and in teal/coral on LuLu's. Both of these were lovely, and I liked them very much... but I couldn't bring myself to spend upwards of $50 unless it was the bag I liked the most (which was still the pink one). So after reading a couple different Little Black Bag reviews and watching several vlog reviews, I finally decided to order the pink bag.

I was very surprised at how much fun the trading function was on LBB, and I got a few other cute things with the pink purse. I placed my LBB order and it took 11 days for my package to arrive. I wasn't wowed with how long it took for it to ship, but I may have just been overly excited to get my pink purse. The box arrived on my door step last Monday night, and I was so happy to finally get a look at my new bag.

First impression= adorable! The actual product was very true to the picture online. I've ordered things in the past from other websites and the colors or accents were off from what I had seen on screen. But this bag was pretty much exactly what was pictured. The bag itself is 11" L x 4" W x 9" H, so about the size of a history text book. The colors are a nice milk chocolate brown and beautiful dark peony pink. The hardware seems to be good quality and the faux leather is very soft and not too shinny  I'm not a huge fan of the patent leather look.

The only thing that I am concerned about is the faux leather getting scratched. When lengthening the shoulder strap the buckle did put a hairline scratch on it. But you can only really see it if you are looking for it. But I do love that the shoulder strap is removable, for a more of a briefcase look. Overall I am super happy with this bag. If you are into the subscription style sites, LBB was really easy to use and they have a lot of really stylish items. 

Have you ordered anything from LBB or other subscription style sites? Did you have a good or bad experience with these? And what cute items did you get? Please share your stories in the comments below! 

Thanksgiving Recovery

Well, we were not able to make it to the dog park this weekend, because I have been sick on the couch since Thursday night. I am feeling better now. And was well enough to take Clover to her vet appointment. Thankfully her ear infection has cleared up, so she doesn't have to be on antibiotics anymore. So in lieu of dog park pictures, here are a few quick snap shots of Axle and Clover! As you can see, we all did a lot of napping this weekend. (I promise I will, one of these days, get a real camera... These cell phone pictures are starting to get embarrassing!!)

 

Hopefully I'll Be feeling better tomorrow! Do you have any cute or funny shots of your dogs or other pets? Share them below!

Pedi Paws - Product Review

We purchased the Pedi Paw Pet Nail Trimmer about a week ago, and I have to say that I was very skeptical at first. Most large breed dog owners know all to well about the hassles of keeping their dogs nails trimmed enough so that they are not lethal weapons of pain, destruction, and misery. Axle and Clover are no different. A simple greeting from them can turn into a major medical emergency (I'm exaggerating of course, but those claws hurt!). And don't even ask me about the pain I've endured when one of their 60lb+ frames has stepped on my bare toes. (OUCH!). But thats part of being a dog owner, no matter how well trained/behaved (ours are pretty good ;)) a dog is, there are going to be incidents. Especially involving their razor sharp tallons.

We trim our dogs nails with a generic clipper about every two weeks or so. And their nails do wear down naturally when we go for walks or go to the park. But they are mostly inside dogs. Neither Paul nor I have a large enough fenced in yard for both of them to be out much durring the day. And we also prefer them inside with us when we are home. (Both dogs are crate trained when we need to go to work). So their nails do not get as much wear and tear as an outside dogs would. 

In the past, when trimming their nails with the clipper, they would end up getting cut into a sharp angle. But there was really nothing else we could do about the edges of their nails becoming sharp. Even if we angle the clippers straight up and down, the edges were still really sharp. I had seen commercials on TV for the Pedi Paw, and I figured it was much like all "As Seen On TV" products. I imagined it would be flimsy, hard to use, or wouldn't work at all. So I never bothered to look into it.

But one afternoon when Paul went to restock our supply dog food/treats/etc. he happened upon a display for the Pedi Paw in Petsmart. I am usually the one who clips the dogs nails (Paul helps me hold them still) and he remembered me always complaining about how sharp the dog's nails get after a trim. So being the thoughtfully sweet guy that he is, he picked one up and brought it home.

After presenting me with the Pedi Paw I was still a little skeptical, but now we had one, and I had no excuse not to at least try it out. So I did, and I must tell you dear readers, that I was pleasantly surprised! After putting in the C batteries and reading the rest of the instructions I decided I'd give it a try. I started with Axle, since he is the least fussy when it comes to nail trimming. He sat nicely for me as I first let him listen to the sound that the rotary grinder made. Its a quiet humming sound, that Axle didn't display too much intrest in. So I asked him for his paw and set out filing down one of his nails. ( I had clipped their nails a few days prior, so they were already a little short.) Here are Axle's nails afterwards!

 I was surprised at how well this thing worked. As long as you use a curling motion when using the grinder, it works perfectly. (don't press your dogs nail firmly on the grinder, you have to sweep it across.) The guard was really nice too, it helps you not to trim the nail too short by accident, and catches all the nail dust. Dogs have quicks in their nails just like we do, so trimming them too short can hurt. After I finished with Axle's front paws it was Clover's turn. I don't think that she particularly dislikes having her nails trimmed, I think its more that she doesn't want to sit still that long for it to be done. (She's a very impatient pooch, haha).

Clover's nails were a little more difficult to file down. She is only 11 months old, so she is still a squirmy puppy. It was a little difficult to keep her nail placed in the guard, but after a few minutes of coaxing, she was finally able to sit still long enough for me to trim her front paws. This is a great tool, but may not be best of you have a squirmy puppy. Its much easier to use if your dog will sit still long enough for you to do it. 

The only downside is the smell. The rotary grinder spins really quickly, and when you place that against your dogs nail (mostly made of protein) it will cause a lot of friction. This friction is what grinds the nail down, and causes heat. So the result is a burning smell. This is normal, but also a litte unpleasant  If you are really bothered by the smell I recommend that you do this outside or in a well ventilated area. The smell goes away a few seconds after you stop grinding the nail down, so its not really that off-putting.

I'm really glad that Paul picked this little tool up for us, its easy to use and I am happy with how well it works. Plus the replacement grinders are really inexpensive (about $3.99 for 12 on Amazon). Now that we have the Pedi Paw I no longer have to worry abut getting scratched or stepped on. Its a great little tool to have.

Have you used this tool before? Or do you have another grooming tool you'd like to recommend? Tell us about it in the comments below!

Web Junk Wednesday

Can you figure out this riddle!? 

 

This picture, and re-enactment makes me crack up, haha! 

 

I love this sparkly kitty

 

yup... this is pretty spot on.

 

*blush* sorry!

Lil Bub is one of my favorite internet cats!

 

I LOVE this water color wallpaper. I would put this all over my house <3

 

Peek-a-boo!

This poor little guy!

Do you have any web junk that you found this week? Share with us in the comments below!

The Franklin Art Scene

Good Monday to you dear readers! I hope that all of you had a good weekend! Ours was busy as always. I most often find myself wishing that I had a weekend from my weekend. But I suppose being busy is better than being bored!

Today I wanted to share with you something that is very dear to me, The Franklin Art Scene (or First Friday Art Crawl) is a street fair that is held the first friday of every month in Franklin Tn. The next one is coming up on December 7th (mark your calendars!!)

This monthly event features all sorts of local artisans around the Nashville and Franklin area. From painters to potters, sculptors and welders, jewelry designers and collage artists. This street fair has something for everyone. I love being a part of this community and seeing all of the new creations by all of my lovely artists friends.  

I have been attending this event since it started back in 2011. Its a wonderful night where local artists open up their homes, galleries, and shops to the public. There is always wine, hors d'oeuvres, live music, and plenty of local arts and crafts up for sale. Several of my very close friends also attend and participate in this event every month. Its a wonderful opportunity for everyone to come out and support local artists and even find treasures to bring home with them. (I always end up buying 2 or 3 pieces of small artwork or jewelry).

The Franklin Art Scene starts around 6pm on the first friday of every month and runs until 9pm (some places will be open a little later depending on if there are still people wandering about). There are dozens of shops and galleries that open their doors to the public around the Franklin square. And some of the antique stores even stay open so patrons can come in and shop. 

One of my very favorite galleries to visit on this special night is run by several of my very good friends. This gallery is not actually a gallery but a house! That magically turns into a gallery on the night of the Franklin Art Scene (thanks to a lot of hard work from the artists).

Located at 225 2nd Avenue South in Historic Downtown Franklin, this gallery houses local artists such as Kristin Clemens, Paul Crommelin, Jerry Quinlisk, Michael Coleman, Katie Connolly Wolf, Katie Wilson and Sam of Luchair Pottery. I have known Kristin Clemens, Katie Wilson, and Paul Crommelin for many years and I love coming to see them and all of their amazing work every month.

If you have not attended the Franklin Art Scene I highly recommend stopping by. There are so many wonderful artists to meet and every one of them has something different to offer.

Are their any local artists or art/craft fairs in your area? Share them in the comments below! I love to discover new local artists and events!!

Saturday shenanigans!

Happy Saturday dear readers! We started our Saturday with a quick 9 am trip to the vet. Clover has had a little ear infection for a few weeks, so we had to go in to see if the ear flush solution the vet gave us was working. Unfortunately, her ear infection has gotten a little worse... so Clover was prescribed some antibiotics and we are supposed to use the ear flush every day instead of every three days. Hopefully the antibiotics will help. She'll have to go back in about a week to see if its getting any better. As you can see Axle was not very amused with being there.

 

After the vet we headed over to the Centennial Dog Park  near West End in Nashville. This is our usual Saturday morning hang out. We have been going to this park for a few months and both the dogs love it!

 

This park is always so busy! There are many regulars that we see here every weekend. And there are also always new people and dogs. This park is also HUGE! Much bigger than any other parks that we have been too. There is a much closer Dog Park in Brentwood. But its about 1/3 the size, and its very hit or miss for anyone else to be there. So we make the 30 minute drive to Nashville every Saturday so that Axle and Clover are able to run and play with all their friends. 

 

Rudy the Collie loves to jump up on the picnic tables at the park so he can get a better view of his surroundings. 

 This is a our good buddy T! He is a sweet and friendly bulldog that we see at the park from time to time. he is such a happy boy, and full of personality!

 

The dog park is a great place to catch up with your friends.

 

Everyone is always full of smiles!!

 

This guy may have bitten off a little more than he can chew. But don't tell him that!

 

This husky was being a little bashful ;)

 

Clover tried to make friends with a King Charles Spaniel. But he wasn't very impressed with her shenanigans.

 

This daring little brown and white girl named Abby figured out that she could jump the 4 1/2 foot fence at the park, and took off on a little adventure. Luckily someone saw her escape and ran after her. Another lady and I were able to find her owner and let her know her dog had gotten out, so she took off to look for her too. Abby's mom was very grateful that the other woman that had gone after her mischievous doggie. Abby was found and few blocks away safe and sound. Her mom decided that she needed to stay on leash for the rest of their stay at the park. Everyone was very happy that Abby was safe.

 

We met a very friendly Boxer today that was all full of smiles!

 

This little guy decided that is was time for his close up!

 

This black a white spotted Great Dane called Nino is a regular at the park, he is SO TALL! And such a sweet boy.

 

Today we also met a couple of Corgis! They were really adorable, and very friendly!

 

Axle made friends with this little girl right away. He was very gentle with her, but she was still very overwhelmed by her first time at the park.  

 

Super cute baby Corgi action!!!!!!!

 

This little 4 month old was very shy at first, but had a bunch of fun running around with all the other dogs. Its always fun too see all of the young puppies at he park!!

 

No one tells you to get off the furniture at the dog park!!

 

This poodle's fro was very fashionable.

 

Here is out Great Dane friend again, HE IS HUGE!!! 

 

This sweet Boxer came to the park too! Sometimes its good to get out and visit with friends, even if you aren't feeling that well.

We had such a good time at the park today, and can't wait for our next visit. I hope that all of you have a good weekend! If you have any of your own dog park pictures or stories please share them in the comments below!!!