THE MANY FACES OF MARTI

May 29, 2009 - A Day to Remember

Our life took a wonderful turn the day we picked up Miss Martina McBride from an adoption event at a local Starbucks.  We had corresponded with her foster mom and I was pretty convinced that we would be bringing her home.  Cheryl lifted her from her crate and I reached for her saying "give me my baby".  Love at first sight and it has only gotten stronger over the past three years.

Marti, her sister and brother were taken to the pound to be put down for the grand crime that they were born.  The owner of her mother did not take the responsibility to have his dog spayed, instead chose to kill puppies instead.  I would love to find that man, take Marti to him and scream in his face "look at what you tried to destroy!!!"  Thankfully, the three puppies were taken from the pound by the good people at SNIPSA. 



 SNIPSA is Spay Neuter Inject Protect San Antonio.  They have it right.  They fostered her until we could find her and adopt her.  I am happy that both her sister and her brother were also adopted and a recent friend of hers also started his new life as a SNIPSA rescue.

Some favorite shots of Marti, in no particular order...someone more OCD than I would have them in chronological order, I'll save my OCD for the important things like the button box being sorted by color or shape.

 This is Marti's summer cut.  She has to be clipped short in the summer so she can swim.  She loves to get in the pool with us and swim, or if we are just out by the pool she'll wade on the steps. This year the burs have been so bad we got her clipped a month early and shorter.   She loves her groomer Miz Kimberley at Dogs Best Friend Grooming.  One of the first times I picked her up she was still on the table and bucking and carrying on something awful...luckily before I made a total fool out of myself rushing in to save my baby I realized that Kimberly was cutting her toenails.  As soon as she was finished Marti was giving her kisses like nobody's business. 

Her daddy has long been her safety net.  As long as he had his hands around her she wasn't scared a bit.  She still runs to him if scared (to protect him!) and he and only he can take her out after dark. 

Her first venture into the pool in her fancy bathing suit her big sister got for her as part of an adoption package she had put together to welcome Marti into the family.  Marti has since decided that since the pool is private she can skinny dip.

Like I said, she really loves to swim, and loves to dive for dive sticks (new trick as of last summer).  Our grandlab, Annie, taught her to swim the first year she was with us, and she hasn't looked back yet. 

Although I think she was sneezing in the picture on the left I like to think she was putting her foot down and giving some poor creature hell for being inside her fence....like a Chupacabra (she does keep an eye open for them and attacks if necessary - that's her story and she is sticking to it.).

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She is totally humiliated that I posted this picture from last Christmas.  She is looking at me like she is  visualizing a Chupacabra standing in front of her.  Each year her favorite store on the planet Petsmart has a special at Christmas with the proceeds going to local shelters.  Marti gets one a year and last year it was a cat...so instead of a monkey on her back, she has a cat on her back.   She is not amused.

She loves going to Petsmart as much as going to the park.  If she can talk her Grandma into coming too she is in 7th Heaven.  As with all things she has a routine, greet the cashier, race  the aisles, say hello to those she missed, walk the aisles and check out what is new and who has been there since she was last.  

MARTI MEETS A LEAF HOPPER

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Marti's first year with us she discovered the leaf hoppers, very strange creatures indeed.  As any intelligent scientist type she studied it, examined it, and then like any less than a year old puppy ate it!  Ewwwww, no kizzie night. 

She is my daughter!  After a tasty treat of leaf hopper guts she washed it down with a cold beer.  Just to keep the record clear, I do not eat bug guts, but I do wash nachos, chips and dips, pretzels and other snacks down with a cold bottle of either Moose Drool or Shiner Bock.  She prefers ultra lights.

But she has a lot of her Daddy in her too, and there is nothing ultra light about her ice cream!

She prefers three large scoops of Blue Bell Homemade Vanilla covered with chocolate sauce, chopped pecans, whipped cream and sprinkles.  And of course a cherry on top.  She gets what she asks for, of course, cleverly disguised as a teaspoon of plain ice cream smeared in her special dessert bowl.  When she wins the lottery she gets to lick the carton clean.

Do not get the idea that Marti is a spoiled princess...

She has chores like any well brought up child.

 She has to stand guard around December 25th in case that fat guy in the funny red suit shows up.  If he does I hope he has a brush in his bag!!  This is a good example why the girls call her a "fuzzy bologna". 

She is also very helpful when we are decorating for Christmas.  One of her duties is stretching the garland out so we can drape it from the deck.  

She excels at bed making....I had made the bed (one of my OCD's - no wrinkles, etc.), gone down for breakfast, came back up to get dressed and this is what I found.  She was so proud of herself!  Guess I didn't do it to suit her.  The pink blob  on the bed with her is her pillow pet her grandma bought her - a bunny of course.

She is expected to help in the clean up after making cookies.  Her favorite is Daisy's Delights a recipe  passed down from her ancestors that she has claimed as her own (of course isn't every thing "MINE") and renamed Marti's Munchies..

Until Mommy is ready to embarrass me with more pictures we'll head down the back roads to see what we can find....btw, notice I am in the front seat and my human brother is in the back seat.  As it should be!