Meeting Santa

We just love the Holidays!

Fino and I got to meet Santa

together for the first time last week.

The photo shoot was planned during

Jerome's stay at the hospital.

Mom had to rearrange her schedule

to let us go (thanks daddy!).

It was worth it, wasn't it?

Speaking of our big brudder, he's now home

and he's feeling much better. We're so happy!

Yesterday, his surgeon removed

the adhesive plasters of his lower abdomen

and he told mom that she could

stop giving him his massive dose of daily antibiotic.

He could finally take a bath!

Later this week, we are going to show you

our Christmas tree.

I, Rouky, broke only 2 decorations this year.

If only for that, Santa really has to

give me the new doggie bed I want!

Very busy times

Our family have been very busy these past weeks...

Mom says she is wayyyy behind in commenting

the blogs

that she follows

and she is really sorry for this.

In between the occasional play session at the dog park

and our daily walks,

Fino and I had to spend some time in our crates...

and build up our separation anxiety problem.

See, our dear brudder Jerome

had numerous appointments

at the hospital.

Two weeks ago,

he had a same-day surgery to have a drain

removed from his right kidney...

only to have to replaced two days later

after a long day at the ER.

It seems that the vital organ could not

work properly without it.

Then, his horrible, hard-to-kill

bacteria manifested itself again

and he had a week of daily IV treatments.

Certainly because of our cheerful presence,

Jerome was a trooper all the way.

He's the best!

The little guy will have to go through another surgery

(this time a major one, like the

one he had earlier this year)

on November 29th, if things

go according to plan.

Mom thinks that we'll go to the doggie hotel again.

Dad replied that, with his days off from work,

we could probably manage without it.

He mentioned something called "money".

Orijen kibbles and delicious treats, we understand,

but money? What is this anyway?

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween!

I hope you had fun and got lots of treats!

Things were really special at our house yesterday,

as Batman (aka Alex, Sophie's brother)

rescued an authentic Chinese panda!

Our big brudder understood what was

going on early on and he learned to say

"Merci" to every generous person who gave him candy.

Fino and I wanted to be part of the event and mom was

thrilled about this until the very last minute.

She then got afraid that we might steal the show

in a bad way if we got too anxious and started barking.

We did meet Batman, though.

And Fino got to show part of his shiny Halloween t-shirt.

Me? I didn't really like my fluffy orange collar,

so I refused to parade in from of the camera.

Maybe next year with a better costume!

A very special day

Time goes by so quickly, humans say...

Today is a very special day for Mom and Dad:

they met baby Jerome for the first time exactly

one year ago.

Their lives has changed so much since that

precious moment!

Look a him, in their Beijing hotel room,

so small in his orphanage's clothes...

At the time, he was still drinking for the bottle

and he had very bad skin, but

he already was a sweet, curious and mischievous

little boy!

Look at him today, playing in grandpa's backyard!

He has grown up in so many ways!

He now calls me "Touty" and wants to know

where I am all the time.

His best friend is Fino:

Jerome is obsessed with trying to put

his harness on!

Little Fino is very patient (most of the time...).

Clearly, our big brother needs to go to

daycare next year!

Jerome still has many follow-ups to go to

at the hospital. We wish him the best!

Also, he has now officially entered his "no" phase,

which can be quite funny sometimes.

And let's not forget his endless energy.

He just never stops!

You are the best brudder we can have, dear Jerome!

Stars for a day

A few months ago, in early June,

Mom took us for a ride to the

doggie daycare where we sometimes go.

Another fun day at the gym?

Not this time!

Instead, we were welcomed

by a very nice man

who was starting a new career as a photographer.

We would be his models for the day.

Mom wanted to have a picture of both

Fino and I to use as a header for the blog.

It turned out that we were not

calm enough to pose together.

Strike the pose!

Fino, you go first!

My turn!

What a great experience we had!

What a Sunday!

Sunday morning, I was ready for

a great day filled with adventures, walks

and naps on the sofa.

The action started early:

Jerome's breakfast went

the other way and I got

stuck with eggs in my ears.

Not pretty...

Everything went fine until late in the evening.

Dad let us out to do our business one last time

before going to bed. Usually, he goes out with us,

but not this time.

Someone else was keeping us company, though:

a small black and white animal

that seemed quite friendly.

A skunk!

Guess who learned a valuable lesson...

The next day, Mom rushed Fino and I to the groomer...

and then to the vet because the skunk's urine

burned my eyes.

She was really worried for me...

Now, I no longer smell awful,

but I'm going to look like this for 10 days.

Stay inside, my friends!

Two days at the zoo

This week-end, mom received photos

from Jerome's happy days at the

Ecomuseum zoo and the Granby zoo, taken

by uncle Alex and grandpa Robert.

Here is a Siberian big cat that really

impressed our big brudder.

Jerome loved the train! He's been saying

"Choo choo" ever since!

Here he is, with grandpa, a bit unsure of himself.

He gained confidence as the day went on.

The otters made Jerome laugh! He kept

running from one window to another.

Seeing fishes, birds and lots of exotic animals is fun,

but running from one exhibition to the next

is still the best!