A Very Merry Christmas Survey!

Hey, all!

I saw this post over at Rebel Mommy Book Blog and then again at Brandie is a Book Junkie, and thought it looked fun! Original post from Lindsay’s Library. December is my favorite month and I would like it to slow down a bit to savor the Christmas feels, so I'm excited to do this tag...survey...this.  Also, the colored text won't go the way I wanted it to. Damnit. Let's go!

Favorite Christmas song/s?

Carol of the Bells! I also really like Baby, It's Cold Outside (Dean Martian version), It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas (Michael Buble version) and Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas (Cat Power version; the one that was in that Apple commercial a year or so ago). And I will admit that Last Christmas (Wham! version) is my guilty pleasure.

Favorite Christmas movie/s?

Um. I'm not a big movie person, so...none? #embarrassed

Rudolph, Frosty, The Grinch or Charlie Brown?

Frosty or Rudolph. The Grinch is eh (those Whos are annoying!) and I can't stand Charlie Brown. 

Best or most memorable Christmas gift you've ever received?

My dog, Nola. 6 years ago this month. Hands down, best gift I ever received, even if I didn't get her on Christmas day (early December instead). She's changed my life and has opened so many doors for me, showed me a passion I didn't realize I had, and helped me through the darkest point in my life. Because of her, I've been able to make dogs my real, actual job.

The second would be my first DSLR camera!

Real tree or artificial tree?

Both! The main tree must be real, but I like having artifical ones scattered about the house. Thankfully my cat isn't an asshole about messing with the real tree, though she does have a strange fascination with the fake one.

I'm watching you. 

What tops your tree? Angel? Star? Bow?

Star!

It's a bush. A Christmas bush. With a star stabbed in there and cockeyed as hell.

When did you stop believing in Santa?

I never did believe in the first place? My family never really did the whole Santa thing; not for any religious reasons, it was just something we didn't do. To be honest, I find the whole Santa concept a tad creepy. #introvert #Don'tComeInMyHouse #SorryI'mWeird

Do you send out Christmas Cards? Do you do photo cards or traditional?

I do...of my dog, and to other dog people. Part of that whole dog-is-my-job thing. ;)  Photo cards all the way!

Do you have a favorite type of Christmas decoration - snowman, trees, village, ect?

The Christmas Dachshund!

Do you have any sentimental decorations or ornaments?

Every year since I was born, my mom found one Christmas ornament and saved them, so that when I was an adult, I'd already have some. They're very special to me!

White lights or colored lights? Big old fashioned lights or mini lights?

White! Both on the tree and for outside. I'm not opposed to a little color, but I like a "white Christmas" (in Florida...). Um, they're just normal lights so...I guess old fashioned?

When e do you start decorating for Christmas?

Usually the day after Thanksgiving, though the past two years it's been so hot that it's more around the first or second week or December. 

Favorite Christmas treat?

I don't eat sweets made with sugar (honey or maple syrup instead; my body just does not handle actual sugar well), but my mom makes some bangin' maybe syrup based fudge. 

Do you like sugar cookies? Gingerbread cookies?

See above. I do like the occasional healthy gingersnap cookie, though.

Do you have hot cocoa  or hot chocolate? Do you like warm chocoately beverages with marshmallows?

Um... there's a difference? I like tea when it's cold out.

What do you eat at your Christmas feast?

Usually ham, pasta, ect. 

Do you open presents on Christmas Eve or wait until Christmas Day?

Christmas day. 

Favorite Christmas-y scent?

Christmas trees, cinnamon, and oranges/citrus. December is the month you get absolutely mouthwatering citrus here in Florida, so that smell is always holiday-ish for me. 

I mean look at that! Perfect grapefruit, and the taste is amazing. 

Do you have any Christmas traditions?

One of my favorite parts of Christmas as a kid was driving or walking around to look at Christmas lights, and it's still my favorite today.

Yup...that's a sailboat at the marina!

If you could ask Santa for any Christmas gift this year - and you know he'd bring it - what would it be?

Money, so that we could move now instead of this coming spring. While he's at it, enough money to live comfortably, travel the world, eat and explore for the rest of my days.

That said, I'd totally settle for a kitten (my cat wants a friend. And by my cat, I mean I want another one) or a yellow lab puppy. ;)

Top Ten Tuesday: Thanksgiving Edition

Hey, ladies!

It's Top Ten Tuesday by The Broke and The Bookish! Since Thursday marks Thanksgiving for us U.S. residents, this week's topic is all about being thankful. Let's jump right in!


I am thankful for.....

10. My family

My immediate family and one aunt are fantastic, amazing people that I adore. I'm truly blessed with wonderful parents and 6 siblings (yes, 6! I'm the oldest of 7!) that are usually great too. ;) I'm lucky enough to have a good friendship with both my parents, and my youngest sister is my pride and joy.

9. My pets (the rest of the family!)

I four pets (3 dogs/1 cat) that are amazing. I lost my youngest dog at the end of October, and it was a heartbreaking experience. However, the newest addition is doing wonders to heal that pain!

This is Nola, my 6 year old miniature dachshund. She's my heart and soul!

This is Pike, an almost three year old mini Aussie. He's an asshole.

This is Lachlan, a 9 week old rescued Beagle. She's the baby and newest addition. 

This is Salem, a 7 month old mutt kitty. She thinks she's a dog, and has been with me since she was a 2.5 week old bottle baby rescue. 

8. Exercise

Walking, yoga, swimming, light free weights, throwing around a ball, ect. I love all of it, and how it clears and calms my mind.

7. Food and health

I love to eat. ;) Thankfully I'm one of those people that genuinely enjoys healthy eating!

And I'm thankful for my good health, and that of my family's (two and four legged)!

6. Sunsets

Not bad for an iPhone shot!

5. Cooler weather

65 degrees is much nicer than 110. Just sayin'.

4. Flowers

3. Music

2. Sleep

1. Books, of course!

eBooks, physical books, audiobooks. Romance, mystery, fantasy, humor. Long, short, funny, sad, crazy, dirty, satisfying. I'm thankful for them all!

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Top Ten Tuesday: My Top Non-Book Websites I'm Currently Obsessed With

Hey, everyone!

It's Top Ten Tuesday by The Broke and The Bookish! Today's topic is 10 Non-Bookish Websites that are your favorite, most frequently used, or the ones you're currently wasting time on. Such a fun topic!


I actually don't spend that much time on different websites, preferring to keep to the few I know and like. Currently, these are the ones I'm loving!

8. Nomadic Matt

My current obsession is all things travel, and with good reason. I'm so excited to be planning this upcoming trip to Europe, and my phone website browser is constantly open to a handful of travel blogs. This is one of my favorites! 

7. Tieks

Italian leather ballet flats? Yes, please! Too bad they're so damn expensive. I really want the teal. And the lavender, the black, the silver....

6. Gigi Griffis/The Ramble

Another travel blog! All of these I'm listing take a more laid-back, honest view of their travels. As a bonus, this girl travels with her dog. 

5. Kelly Moore Bags

These camera bags are just gorgeous. I love the Kate, the 2 Sues, and the Boy. I need to win the lottery.

4. Pinterest

Because Pinterest. Food, humor, travel, classy almost-porn, tattoos, style...it's a wasteland.

3. Facebook

It's a much more pleasant experience since I did a spring clean on friends and groups. ;)

2. Instagram

Love, love, love Instagram. So much pretty!

1. Montecristo Travels

Travel with an adorable dog, and an equally adorable couple!

What about you? What is your favorite website?

A Twist of Fate

Hey, ladies!


This isn't a post I was planning, and it has nothing to do with books. For the fellow animal lovers out there, this may make you cry.

So Saturday afternoon while out for a drive, I spotted a dog on the side of the road. Very thin, but she moved too quickly for me to see much else. There were granola bars and some cashews in the car, so turned around and drove back to her, thinking of giving her the food. Pulled over, and nearly swallowed my tongue. Here comes this emaciated dog, literally every bone in her body poking out against her skin, covered in scabs, cuts and sores, and nearly completely hairless. I don't even know how she was alive. You'll see in a minute what I'm talking about.

Seeing this dog, a fucking puppy, in this state made red stain the edges of my vision, my stomach churn, and tears prick my eyes. Crouched on the side of the road, hand feeding this walking skeleton, tears running down my faces at how broken she was. I couldn't leave her. I just couldn't. I gathered her bloody body into my arms, put her in the car, and off we went.

Of course, this happened later in the afternoon on the weekend in a small town, so no vets were open. Called two normal vets, called the e-vet, and both suggested taking her to animal control. The shelter in this town is tiny and overrun; they'd take one look at this puppy and have her put to sleep. Not on my watch. After getting some advice on how to keep her comfortable until vet offices opened on Monday, she came home.


She had an oatmeal bath to clean her and sooth her skin, ticks pulled off, ears cleaned, she had her nails trimmed as her dew claws were starting to grow back into her legs, and she had a Capstar (flea pill that kills them in 15 minutes or so) to get rid of her ranging flea infestation.
She's been getting small, easy to digest meals every hour or two, along with very frequent small amounts of electrolyte water. She's being sprayed down with Vetericyn Wound Spray (if you have any kind of animal, that stuff is worth its weight in gold) four or five times a day, and is getting plenty of rest. We'll be going into the vet's today.




I can't even put into words the horrible shape this girl is in. I'm almost certain she's suffering from severe mange, in addition to being totally emaciated. There is no fat, and no muscle on this dog. She's literally skin stretched tight over bones. You can count her bones, even the ones in her face.
She has hair on her tail, patches on her legs, and a few pieces on the rest of her body, but is otherwise bald. Her skin is grey, scabbed and full of sores, sunburnt and rough. She has a lacerated ear, and a sizable puncture of some form in her rump. She was so weak on Saturday she could barely stand, but after food, water, and warmth, she was moving better yesterday afternoon, and was more alert and interested in saying hi and having pets.
She has worms, what smells like a double ear infection (one of my dogs used to get ear infections due to food allergies, and they have a distinctive stench), and is more than likely anemic from the sheer amount of fleas and ticks she had on her. Her nails are overgrown, like I said, causing her feet to splay like crazy. Her eyes are discharge-y, too.

She's a young dog, if not a full out puppy. She has enormous paws, and a very puppy face. She has a good bit of adult teeth in, but they're still bright white and show no dullness of age. She's bigger than a beagle, smaller than a lab. Right now she's maybe 20-25lbs. What little fur she does have is a dark reddish brown.

She is the sweetest dog. She's never once so much as growled, despite all the pain she's in. She's gentle, very friendly, and seems to like kids. Curious and likes to be near people. To have gone through all of this and still be such a gentle soul is astounding.


While I tried to avoid her more gruesome marks, these pictures are upsetting and frankly gross.

I don't know how she ended up like this, but I'd put money on her being someone's pet at some point. She can walk on a leash, knows what a food bowl looks like and a treat bag sounds like, has no issues with a crate, isn't phased by sounds of a home (vacuum, TV, ect). She's heartbreaking to watch.


As of right now, she's being called Lucky Puppy (original, I know). Feel free to suggest a name! Only rule is it must be a book character's, to stick with my theme.

I have three dogs of my own (two miniature Dachshunds and a mini Aussie). Lucky's been isolated from them until the vet can diagnose her, get her wormed and vaccinated and healthy enough to interact with my crew.

My main concern is getting her healthy, and then go from there. She's more than likely going to be staying here, provided she has no problem with other dogs once her personality comes back more. I was in no way prepared or planning for this kind of thing, that's for sure! As a matter of fact, I'd been planning to get a Border Collie this winter. Maybe I'll be the crazy lady with five dogs...well, the current three are so small it'd really be only like 3 "normal" dogs. ;)


I'm off to the vet with Lucky. Keep your fingers crossed for her!


- The Bibliophile Babe