Yesterday was all about Lizzie, which is just as it should be. However, after we took a long morning walk, she was ready for a nap, and I got to knit. So, just for a quick update on tibetan clouds, I finished the main pattern repeats. Just the final edging and a bind off now! I can’t believe it’s almost done! I didn’t get the yarn for the upcoming project yesterday, so I had plenty of time on my day off to work on tibetan clouds.
Now on to Lizzie Bean. We had a pretty low key day overall. Lizzie slept quite a bit, which I think is pretty normal for another big change. She was rescued on August 1, so she’s dealing with two big home changes and a lot of shuffling in a 2 week period. I, of course, continued to take photos.
Because those ears! Those funny ears!
She found her voice. She’s a very quiet dog overall, and since Coco didn’t bark at all, and she’s been so much like Coco, we wondered if she’d ever bark. Mr. Ink came home for lunch. When he walked in the door, she let out a lone, quiet “woof.” He greeted her, and then went to the kitchen to figure out what to have for lunch. He absent mindedly tapped on the fridge door. She tore out of the living room toward the door barking and growling! It startled us both quite a bit. Then we realized she thought someone was knocking. We weren’t looking for a guard dog, and we are glad she doesn’t bark much, but we’ll happily take the alert from her! Of course, after 17 years with a dog that didn’t bark, Mr. Ink thinks it’s great fun to instigate the barking. I told him he’d likely regret it if he kept it up.
We went to walk Miss Butterfly home from school. As soon as we got outside to do so, we had to spend 3 minutes rolling in the grass.
This was the case every time we went outdoors.
It rained yesterday, and we realized that she doesn’t particularly want to be out in the rain. I went to take her outside, but when she realized it was raining, she noped right back into the house. I didn’t fight it, it was a precautionary trip outside. She’s totally housebroken, but she doesn’t indicate when she needs to go out so you have to just do the remembering for her. I think once she settles in, we’ll be able to read that better.
Mr. Ink and I went out to a pet store to pick up a few things. We needed a dog bed, and a kennel pad, as we threw out the one that Coco had. He had gotten so old and feeble toward the end that he was really struggling to not have accidents. So, a new pad was wise. While there, we picked out a soft squeaker toy and a kong. Since she had major work done on her teeth recently and is still on antibiotics, I wanted gentle toys. And, I didn’t want to spend too much, as the foster home told us she didn’t really play. So, we started with those two things.
Once home, Mr. Ink kind of teased her a bit with the soft squeaker toy. And then quite suddenly she began a very energetic game of fetch with Miss Butterfly, complete with jumping high in the air, and intermittent tug of war. We were absolutely delighted! We also need a more sturdy toy. I could hear it tearing as she tugged and tossed her head around with Miss Butterfly holding the other end. I guess her teeth aren’t hurting either?
She’s such a ridiculously polite dog. It’s almost as if Mr. Ink had to convince her it was ok to have a moment where she wasn’t perfectly good and polite. And then all bets were off for awhile!
I am back at work today. I wish I was able to take more time off with her, but I also realize she’ll have to get used to the routine of us being at work during the day. I am glad Mr. Ink will be home at noon to make sure she’s ok. I am also glad it’s Wednesday, not much longer before we have a weekend. Mr. Ink has to take a few more days off in September, so I plan to join him in that. So, Lizzie Bean will have people at home as much as is possible in the coming month! And you’ll probably be seeing a TON of her.
Suzy Sells Sea Shells 
I am glad she felt like it was OK to play. If she was rescued, who knows what kind of nasty life she had? the being very careful and quiet is likely because she doesn’t want to get beaten or neglected. Poor little thing.
Great news on Tibetan shawl! I can’t wait to see it finished. It is still on my queue, just moved down several notches. But I will get to it someday.
Here’s a small world story for you – I was looking at a hat pattern that has been in my queue for a long time, wondering if it would work for the craft fair in November (ie quick to knit, cute, and can be made with yarn I have) so I wandered off to look at other people’s projects, and lo and behold, there was a much younger miss butterfly modeling the hat! You made it many moons ago – the adult pixie hat. I have made the baby version, but never the larger sized one. Now, I know you don’t like hats, so I trust you will answer me honestly – did you like the end result? Do you ever wear it, or did you give it to someone who wears it?
I think she was neglected, certainly. But, I think she was also loved at one time. She’s super loving, and she picks up commands very easily, as already housebroken, etc. So, somewhere along the line, someone was doing something right. I don’t think she’d be THAT good without it. But, I think two things were happening. She was neglected, and so being an exuberant dog hurt, because she was so matted up. Between that and possibly just not having someone to play with, she fell out of the habit. I said right from the start when I met her that I suspected she had a lot more personality in her that we’d see as she got settled. I am just surprised at how fast we are seeing it! We are all completely infatuated, that’s for sure!
The adult pixie hat! I actually think I’ve made a few of those, at least two. I like them because I hate knitting hats. So, knitting something flat that eventually becomes a hat is right in my wheelhouse. I gave one to my coworker, and she wore it ALL OF THE TIME. (She may still, she doesn’t live here anymore.) I wear mine less often, but only because I have a gazillion hats to choose from. And sometimes Miss Butterfly picks it to wear. I basically keep all hats, knit and otherwise, in a bin and household members just choose what they want on any particular cold day. So, I’d say great knit, and yep, they’ve been worn!
I think that Lizzie is SO lucky to have you guys! Maybe it was a case of she was loved and that owner died or something. Because you are right, she does seem to understand loving. 🙂 My mom has a esuce dog that simply doesn’t play! She is a very good girl, and very loving, but has some quirks – can’t eat if any one is looking, and obviously never got played with. You can throw a tennis ball and she ignores it. She’s a retriever! But I love rescue dogs, because if they haven’t been completely ruined, they are so appreciative of a loving kind home.
Thanks for the info on the adult pixie hat – I will probably make a couple of them – the baby one was fun to make, and in bulky yarn, it should knit up fairly fast!
I have an Aussie (regular sized) and relatively speaks she’s quiet but we’ve never encouraged her. But she does “buff” which is a pretty common Aussie noise. She also can muster up a “big dog bark” if needed- when her flock (chickens) are being threatened by dogs or bears!
I hope you guys keep enjoying the adventure with her.
She seems like quite the character! She makes me laugh too with her silly ears and googly eyes, she’ll be a wonderful family addition.
That eye is hilarious, isn’t it? I think she does have a bit of an eccentric pupil, it’s not really that noticeable in real life but man is it noticeable in photos! But, what really makes it look dramatic in photos is that she’s got a large brown spot on the outside of that pupil as well, which gives the illusion it’s really really off! It’s definitely one of the things that made me giggle over her photos and look at her more and more, until I had to meet her.