Easy Pet Fashion Personalized Bandana with the Cricut Joy

This post is brought to you by Cricut. All opinions are 100% my own.
Our dogs are like a part of our family. I know I'm not the only one who feels this. Pet adoption rates during COVID have been soaring! If you didn't adopt a pet during quarantine, I bet you know someone who did! Today, I've got a little something for that furry member of your family...or to give as a gift! Create a fashion statement for your pet with these easy to make personalized bandanas. Using your Cricut, you can personalize just about anything for anyone, even the furriest members, and no, I'm not talking about my dad! Why not customize one of the most iconic fashion statements a dog can make and add some personality to a bandana. I'll show you how you can easily sew a basic pattern to make an over-the-collar dog bandana or personalize an existing bandana to fit the personality of your pet. Don't worry, you can even make these for your cat or other furry friends with some tweaks to the pattern. Want to find out how? Come check it out!

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Frozen Dog Bones Recipe

Everyone loves a frozen treat when the weather starts to warm up. Everyone. Including your dog. Imagine wearing a fur coat all summer long! So why not treat your furry friends to a nice healthy frozen treat when the sun starts to beat down. These frozen dog bones are made with everything your puppy loves. The ingredients are safe for your pooch and they are so easy to make! They will leave you and your pooch feeling pretty darn cool.

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Slip on Collar Reversible Dog Bandanna Tutorial

I am just a little bit obsessed with my dogs. In case you didn't know, I have an adopted Golden Retriever named Sophie and a rescued Yorkie named Frankie. They have their own Instagram account {@sophieandfrankee}. You should follow it. Sophie, dare I say, is just a bit larger than her furry sister Frankie and she's got quite a bit more "fluff", so she doesn't need the same kind of wardrobe that Frankie has because she'd just be too darn hot in everything. But in an attempt to get them matching anything, I made them these slip on {or slip through} the dog collar reversible bandannas. They were super easy to sew and they have both been wearing them for more than a week and they are holding up nicely. You can tailor this easy sewing tutorial to fit any size dog. Come check it out! 

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Fun Outdoor Activities for You and Your Dog

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Petcurean. All opinions are 100% my own.

Our dogs are a part of our family. When we can, we like to include them in the things that we are doing. Dogs can also get bored easily and that can lead to them turning to naughty behavior. Bringing your dog with you while you are out and about won't only strengthen your bond, but it will also provide the mental and physical stimulation that your pet needs. There are lots of fun things to do on the go with your pooch. These are just a few dog friendly activities that you can add to your list and you are both sure to have a tail-wagging good time!

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Homemade Peppermint Dog Biscuit Recipe

Last week we got a new puppy. Well, she's not a puppy, she's actually older than our 7 year old golden retriever. She's a rescue dog that's lived her life in a crate breeding puppies for a puppy mill. It's a sad sad story, and I'm shocked that anyone would treat this sweet thing the way she's been treated because man, she's got a lot of love to give! All that said, while it's been an easy adjustment with our other dog, I've been trying to be intentional about sharing the love even when one of the fur babies is getting more attention. Our Sophie is highly motivated by treats so I thought I should treat her to something fun and maybe on the sly, freshen her breath a bit too! You may not have a dog adjusting to a major life event, but all our fur babes need some homemade love from time to time don't you think? Why not try this recipe for these homemade peppermint dog biscuits.

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How to Bell Train Your Dog to Go Outside

How to Bell Train Your Dog to Go Outside

When we first adopted Sophie, I had several friends suggest that we bell train our dog. I had never heard of bell training before so of course, I had a lot of questions.

What is bell training? 

 Bell training consists of teaching your dog how to ring a bell whenever they need to go outside.

Why should you bell train your dog? 

Because with bell training, you will be able to hear when you dog needs to go out. I used sign language with my babies before they could talk, this seems very similar to me...the ability to communicate with your dog.

How do you bell train your dog? 

We started by hanging a single bell on a string by the door. Every time we would take Sophie out, we would ring the bell and head outside. During our house training phase we were going outside every hour on the hour and she was getting a treat every time she would come back in. 

How long does it take to bell train your dog?

 I think it depends on the dog. Within the first two days, Sophie was dinging the bell on her own. Definitely after a week, she knew that if she would ding the bell we would take her out. Sometimes she would even ding it if she knew there were kids outside that she wanted to play with!

UPDATE: we bell trained a rescue dog in less than 48 hours using these same techniques. It's easy!

How to make your own Dog Training Bells for your Door

Start with your materials:

You will need four large bells. I got mine at JoAnn's two for $1.

keychains-mine were from the dollar store-you will need four

7/8" grosgrain ribbon

The key chains came like this. I unwound the extra chains so I was left with just the ring. Then take the ring, and put one bell on each ring.

I cut about 30" of ribbon. This will all depend on how long you want it to hang. When Sophie was smaller, the string we started with was too short. So make sure it hangs down low enough for the dog to be able to nose it.

Thread through the bells and starting eying the placement. You want two hanging at the bottom and two about five inches up from the bottom.

You form a loop that the bells rest in and sew the ribbon together making sure the bells hang how you want them to.

Make sure you also form a loop for the door handle. Again, taking into consideration the height of your handle and the height of your dog.

That's it! As always with training, consistency is key. Have you bell trained your dog? I want to hear about your experience.

 

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How to Pose your Dog for a Family Picture

Our three year old Golden Retriever Sophie is a part of our family.

It didn't even cross my mind that we wouldn't include her in our impromptu trip to the park to try to take photos for our Christmas card.

My husband set up the tripod and got the camera ready while we all tried to pose and hold his spot.

Unfortunately, Sophie didn't get the memo that you are supposed to turn towards the camera, smile and look your best.

We ended up with these pictures of Sophie.

She's looking at the camera, but we can't get her to sit.

Here she is sitting, but the kids are all laughing because she isn't turned toward the camera.

Our attempt to just let Sophie chase squirrels in the park, left her to actually photo bomb us at the last second.

Trying to get a family picture for our Christmas card with her in it, just wasn't working.

If only I had remembered that she will do anything for a treat.

Sophie is partial to the bacon and peanut butter flavored kind.

I just take the treat bag out and she immediately sits and is ready to do anything I ask of her!

Behind the camera, this is what I am holding to get Sophie to sit in position for Christmas picture attempt 2.

I ended up getting this very dignified looking picture of her by the Christmas tree. 

Man, why didn't I think of bringing her treats along to the park when we were trying to get a family picture?

Live and learn.

Next year, the five of us and the dog will be gracing the family Christmas photo card.

Of course, I'll make sure I have dog treats in my pocket.

I would love to see your cute pet Christmas photos.

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DIY Didn't I Think of This Sooner! The Easy Way to Get Rid of Dog Hair in your Car.

There are times in my life when I wonder, why the heck did I not think of this sooner! Please tell me that I'm not the only one! This literally happened to me last week when I was cleaning out my car. Our golden retriever Sophie likes to go with us in the car where ever we go. In fact, if I say let's go for a walk, she usually runs towards the car because she would rather drive anywhere than go on a walk! But, our big hairy animal sheds. A LOT. And her nice blond fur gets left on all of the dark surfaces of my nice new mini-van, so something had to give. Either the dog had to stop driving with us as co-pilot {not going to happen, look at that face}, or I would have to find out a better way to clean that stubborn dog fur out of my car. I think I found the solution and it left me wondering why I didn't think of it sooner!

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Sophie's birthday! How we celebrate with a puppy party.

Did you know that this week is National Dog Week? You know what else it is? It's also Sophie's birthday! Sophie is our 5 year old golden retriever that is everyone's favorite furry member of the family. I love that we get to celebrate both this week!

I wanted to share a little bit about Sophie with you.



We love spending time with Sophie and like to include her in everything that we do. The picture above was from a recent beach vacation to the Washington coast. She had her best time running in the sand and chasing seagulls! If there is one thing that Sophie loves, it's being at the beach.  Pretty sure she gets that from me!

We are capping off National Dog week and Sophie's birthday week with a dog food cake. How fun is this?! I made it using a can of wet dog food and sprinkled it with some dry dog food.  The candle is made from a treat and it's resting on a pretty awesome Frisbee she can play with later.



Since mealtime is her favorite time, I think she likes her birthday cake!

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The 5 love languages for dogs

I'm a dog lover. I know there are cat people and dog people in this world. I am a dog person. Our golden retriever Sophie came into our lives almost five years ago. We adopted her as a 12 week old puppy the week after we moved into our new home. Our kids were all switching schools mid year and we all had to make the transition to a new home and to a new town. I had no idea how much it would help to have Sophie as an ice breaker.

We moved less than a mile from the elementary school, so when classes resumed after the Christmas break holiday, the kids and I started walking to school. People stopped to ooh and ahh over how darn cute she was, and we had a chance to meet so many new friends because of her.

Sophie continues to make friends everywhere she goes because of her constant smile and her sweet personality. She is such a treasured loyal companion to all of us which is why we like to do what we can as her dog family to speak her love language.

Back a zillion years ago when my husband and I were first married, we did a book study by Gary Chapman together called The 5 Love Languages.  It was a fantastic book for us as newlyweds.  One I have referenced many times in our nearly two decades of marriage. The author went on to write a book that looked at the 5 love languages as they relate to children. 

We all know how our sweet fur babies become like one of our children {though Sophie keeps me up far less and is the most low maintenance of all the ladies in our home} so I thought I would write a spin off myself and create the 5 love languages for dogs.

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Show your most loyal family member some love

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Sponsored by Purina for IZEA. All opinions are 100% mine.

One of the best things that we have done as a family was adopt our nearly five year old golden retriever, Sophie.  Sophie was a Christmas present for our family less than a week after we moved into our new home.

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Making a Dog Food Canister for Your Dog Treats with Custom Vinyl

Making a Dog Food Canister for Your Dog Treats with Custom Vinyl

Everything looks better and more organized in a nice container, don't you think?

I saw these canisters and knew I had to make something similar to store dog treats in.

I picked this canister up at Goodwill for $2.99.

A little Silhouette machine magic and there you go!

Now just add your favorite treats. 

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I and Love and You

 Our four year old Golden Retriever Sophie is a part of our family.

She's been with us since we adopted her when she was 12 weeks old.

We watch her when she sleeps,

{it's so cute to see her old man eyebrows smoosh together when she has her eyes closed and is resting her head on her paws}

we take her with us when we go places,

{it's the cutest thing watching her swim out in the Puget Sound trying to keep up with the kayak full of her kids}

and we do our best to find the highest quality food and treats for her so that Sophie can stay strong and healthy for as many years as she can be!

Our local Fred Meyer and QFC

{Kroger affiliates}

has started carrying the high quality pet food and treats by I and Love and You.

It's hard to find good quality pet food at your local grocery store, so I am so excited about this new partnership!

Now I can get high quality food for our whole family

including high protein, grain free food and treats for the furry member of our family.

Sophie will do anything for a treat.

It's our job as humans to make sure it's the best most high quality treat for her.

You can download a coupon for I and Love and You products today.

Click here to find the retailer nearest you.

In no time, your dog will be licking their lips as a thank you too!

Disclaimer: This is a sponsored post for “I and love and you” Total Pet Care.  All opinions are 100% my own.  I wouldn't tell you about something that I didn't love.  Promise.

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Dog hair bow tutorial

It's no secret that our dog Sophie is a part of our family.

We couldn't imagine family life without her.

This month, we celebrate her 4th birthday,

and just like one of our kids, 

it's hard to imagine life without her.

Sophie often times gets mistaken for a boy,

mostly because she's such a big girl.

 I don't know why it bothers me, but I like to set the people straight,

just like I did when my bald headed daughter was an infant and was called "him" several times.

I decided just like I used to Velcro hair bows into the fuzz on my little baby girls head so that people wouldn't confuse her for a boy, 

I would to do the same thing and make some hair bows for my pooch.

Here is what you need:

one piece of 5 inch long ribbon

one piece of 4 inch long ribbon

a small rubber band {I got them in a pack of 500 for $1 at the Dollar store}

and a crochet hook or pencil to help you loop the rubber band around

Loop your longer piece of ribbon around and overlap and meet the ends in the middle

Do the same thing with the smaller piece of ribbon and put the loop ends together in the middle facing each other.

Take your crochet hook or pencil and place your rubber band on top.

Twist the rubber band and pull it over the bottom of the crochet hook making an x.

Pull the bottom of the rubber band over the back and to the top.

Then slowly remove your ribbon, holding the back of the loop with your finger.

Twist the loop and bring one end of your ribbon around the rubber band.

Find a sleepy puppy and a small tuft of hair and slip the rubber band on.

Now there is no mistaking that this puppy is a girl.

A tough girl, but a girl.

Red is her color don't you think?

I am participating in the 2014 Dog Fence DIY Hackathon and I created this project as a part of my participation. disclaimer: I did receive compensation for this post.  All opinions and ideas are 100% my own. 

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